Evaluations 1, 2, and Proposal
Evaluation 1
Through my research at the GOMA and their Taste exhibit it helped me discover the importance of organisation of works when it comes to a collaborative show with many themes. Collating works according to theme likeness, media use or stylistic similarities helps the viewer flow through the show with ease and read the show as a whole rather than separate and disjointed. The appearance of the gallery itself is also important. If the room is all white and plain it may help works stand out but it may lack individuality and personality. On the other hand, if the room it too ornate and bold, it then becomes the focal point, not the artwork, like observed in the Talbot Rice Gallery at Qiu Zhijie’s exhibition. I felt the work was stunted by the impact of the room would have been better received in a less decorated space. As discussed in my tumblr about leaflets, the floor plans shown in leaflets make galleries easy to navigate and help separate the individual shows, I think considering our 3 way degree show a floor plan to let viewers know where one show starts and one stops would be especially handy.
In almost every gallery I visited in the past few weeks I have discovered less leaflets and more QR codes. These codes lead to information about the artist, their work and the gallery itself. This is a much more eco friendly way to communicate with the viewer, but I do feel that people prefer an in person copy of something. We have the luxury of being able to say less about an actual gallery as we are holding our show in the college itself but I believe having smaller leaflets made with less paper, using it for QR codes and any crucial information so the details and info can be read online while still having the novelty of something to keep and take away with you will work best. I believe if there is a QR code allocated to each student to give them freedom to add any and all information they like as well as advertisement for their other platforms such as websites or social media links, this will allow all students to equally and fairly be able to show their work to its full potential while not taking up any physical space.
Finally, through researching a couple artists and their online presences I have discovered that if they have a large online presence it is much easier to research their works, their careers and upcoming shows. As discussed at the session at the Schoolhouse building, curators and artists need to work alongside the technology rather than refuse it. In this modern age, with a new generations worth of artists becoming the new frontrunners, I think it is nieve for artists not to be active on at least one form of social media if they want to stay relevant and available, no matter how popular they may be. Having a website as the home for all of your online resources with an abundance of links to other social medias to explore makes a newer artist really accessible and easy to research and returning to the point made before about QR codes, having all of this information within these links will help us new emerging artists make connections and build a loyal audience.
Proposal
My work is reliant on shape and symbolism. The psoas conveys stability and power, but it can be where we store our trauma. The triangle and connotations that come with it represent power, trauma and what the body holds. This theme of shape will play into the methods of displaying my work. I plan to install will be a large square canvas about 75x75cm. this canvas is extremely thick to allow for my cut-out shape technique which makes the canvas quite heavy. This scale and weight combination will need to be addressed when hanging this canvas, the nails I use in the wall will need to be long and sturdy and when installing I will need to check with something of a similar weight before then securing my work, so I don’t run the risk of anything falling and damaging not only the work but something or someone else. One thing that is important to my canvas is the fact that it is plain and white, like any other unassuming canvas, but the shape makes it different. This works best against a plain wall, any impurities in the exhibition space will need to be delt with to allow the canvas to blend into the space seamlessly.
Technical needs aren’t much of an issue as my work is a singe sculpture and doesn’t require access to power supply. Inspired by the trip to the Talbot Rice Gallery and Qiu Zhijie exhibit, the one thing I will require is one or two spotlights to highlight the intricate shapes, curves, and folds of my final work. Unfortunately Zhijie had access to a large darker room, I understand that a dark room when co-exhibiting with others is unachievable but a corner where I could control the lights would be best case scenario, failing that, access to a naturally lit space would allow for this natural light to highlight my work and its intricates, instead of artificial clinical lighting, which allows things to be seen but is too well lit for how I want to display my piece.
As I have been running the college Instagram takeover, I have learned new skills in achieving engagement with the account and its posts. This has helped me with my own Instagram and will help when advertising the show, and beyond that myself. My Instagram has any and all information needed to get I contact with me and has all up-to-date information on my current projects. I will be advertising the end of year show on both my own and the college Instagram to get as much reach as possible for my, and everyone’s work. My art page is an important crutch in my career so I have generated a QR code to display at the show to direct people to that page so they can both, keep up to date with my work and be able to get in contact with me. This QR code technique has been observed in almost every gallery that I have visited so would be strange if I didn’t have one of my own.
Evaluation 2
Throughout this promotion module I have been expanding my knowledge on promotional techniques by visiting galleries all over Scotland. I have also been researching into artists online and how social media has influenced their success. Using this research I have collated what I thought was successful and unsuccessful and considered them all when installing and advertising my own final work in my degree show.
Due to the size of our graduating class we have decided that most of the class will need to share a larger space to accommodate for the Design Practice degree as well as CAP. Due to this we had to pair up works that didn’t take up the most room to share, which have very contrasting visuals, so that when viewing they will not be confused as the same artists work. This curating came from the Gallery of Modern Arts “Taste” exhibition that very clearly displayed how to organise works in a similar way to achieve the best impact from all. I have also painted my boards to express they are pristine. This came from the Talbot Rice Gallery with its very ornate gallery space during the Qiu Zhijie exhibition. I felt they took away from the grandeur of the work which is exactly the opposite effect from what I want. In painting the walls I have eliminated any distraction from the space and turned all attention the the work itself.
When discussing keepsakes from the show the idea of leaflets was raised, but the sustainability issue was too much of a factor and having to print more each night would be an issue. We then decided on the idea of individual invitations for the opening night to give to friends and family to keep. This would also be nice for the graduates themselves to keep. Giving each student five each was just enough to print at a high quality without costing too much. Due to the leaflet idea being scrapped we used the floor plan we created to help organise the placement of the show. We created a small model and used that to rearrange and curate the show with minimal hassle which made the install go much smoother. We also created a poster for our show which we all sent an image in for. One was selected and we have all been given some to hand out to advertise locally. This poster was also advertised on the Artists Newsletter which is distributed nationally.
I have generated and printed a QR code that will link to my Instagram. I will have this displayed under name plate so people have access to my social and have contact with me rather than printing off business cards which aren’t sustainable enough. Along with advertising on my own Instagram I have been successfully running the CAP instagram. As well as a very well received takeover, I have posted our degree show poster to generate some interest for the show. This was also well received and allowed me to reach out to previous graduates who, with confirmation from the rest of the class, I then invited to our opening night. To keep in line with the GDPR regulations we have sent all of our requested invitations to our faculty head to forward on on our behalf. These graduates also posted our poster on their own Instagram in support of the show which landed itself to even more reach which will hopefully equal a very successful show.
I think visiting galleries informed my install in a very professional way, the use of QR codes and curating techniques was crucial. I do wish I had more professional contacts to invite to broaden my reach. Previous alumni are good contacts but curators or gallery owners would have been great people to have contact with.