Some go to the Whitney Biennial for the art; I go for the creative writing. Ok, ok, I go for the art too. But also to enjoy the translucent pane of bubblegum that language is stretched to in artist statements and signage. (And no, I am not some anti-intellectual, anti-art peasant; I belong to three museums and am the tireless missionary of culture for my family, endlessly dragging them to exhibitions to forcibly broaden their minds. I really, really like Miró.) But the words! “Liminal” was a good one for a couple of years. Its literary use in galleries and museums seemed to be “an excuse for the artist to pair up two completely different things and claim the piece connected them somehow,” as opposed to the more traditional “threshold, or occupying space near or around a threshold.” If you furrow your brow and try really hard you might see how the original and new definition could be connected, evolutionarily, but the OED certainly wouldn’t approve. (Poor old “liminal” also achieves another new and unneeded definition through popular memes, which seems to be “scary and abandoned.” Sigh.) If you go to the Biennial, take it from me: go early in the day and in comfortable shoes. And feel free to memorize a few phrases below that will help make the experience more comprehensible and pleasant. Or rather: it might invoke a presence of uneasy equilibrium at your site-specific, analogue encounter with real and imagined liminal spaces. You’re welcome. “Manipulated everyday objects” = I played with things in my apartment. “Reimagined though placement” = Then I put the things over there instead of here. It looked cool. “Situates their practice in dialogue” = I am looking for an excuse to mention these super hot, push-button issues. I *totally* think about them while I paint when I’m not thinking about lunch. “Series of physical interventions” = See “Every day objects, manipulated.” https://www.instagram.com/p/Cbz2Eccrffv/?utm_medium=tumblr
prguitarman
stormborns
dailybridgerton
annaxmalina
tangentwithtanner
gummygunk