Went
to have a little peak at the Wolfgang Tillmans show at Tate Modern and were
pleasantly surprised. Something we enjoyed the most was that it’s as much a
large-scale installation as it is a traditional museum exhibition. The many
photographs on the walls of the many rooms are curated by the artist himself,
and in the artists own words, disregarding conventions of chronology and theme
in favour of configurations that constitute his “personal response to the
present moment”. And even though this sounds fairly wishy washy, the resulting
experience is one of intensity and beauty, but which lacks a strong sense of
narrative or direction. Now this can go either way, we felt it actually
complimented the work it drove home this point that art is unavoidably rooted
in the present, and it is this sense of immediacy that is also one of the
show’s greatest strengths. This is something that is highlighted by the fact
that most of the photographs on display are not glazed or even framed, but are
hung on the walls from bulldog clips, heightening the sense that there is
little mediation between viewer and image. It gives them a transient feeling,
one that suggests that they are only there temporarily (which is true). Getting
almost into a truth-to-presentation kind of place.Without a doubt the most
exciting aspect of the show was when he was raising pertinent questions about
the pace of technological change and developments in photographic reproduction.
For example, in CLC 800, dismantled,
the artist has photographed his old colour photocopier with all the screws
removed; definitely an expensive piece of equipment when it was bought in 2003,
by 2011 its technology was obsolete. It positions photography as both part of
this technological evolution and a means for documenting it.
To
us it feels unfortunate that he calls himself a photographer, because such a
definition could perhaps be restraining parts of his practice. We mention this because
the most notable points of the exhibition are where he asks questions about his
art form, as opposed to just using it. His hints of issues such as cultural acceptance, Brexit or recorded music
fall a little flat, perhaps because of a lack of context. Like we said
previously, his work is best when he is pushing photography to the limits. But saying
that it truly is a thought-provoking exhibition that delves into the position
of photography and the artist in the current cultural climate, but doesn’t
fully direct the viewer towards the wider questions it raises. Not that this is
problematic and perhaps it’s intentional to give initial directions and then
leave the rest to chance. Certainly a preference in our own practice.
In other news Aidan Strudwick,
a fellow CSM student and artist has asked us if we would be up for collaborating
with him on his degree show performance. He’s going to be producing a Santa’s
grotto style work where he plays Santa (naturally) and he thought it would be
fun if people could have their photographs taken in a similar fashion to our
work we had at Tate Modern, Marking Time,Treading Water. We will be dressed up as elves which is less exciting but
there’s the potential for free drinks so….
