Exit133

February 12, 2008 · Derek

DB: The Art of the Gallery

In creating custom fashion, I have developed an expirographic theory about what people put on their bodies. Most people dress within the confines of the way they wish the rest of the world to see them. Ergo, the way in which most people dress caters to the world in which they wish to live, that is to say, the Context in which they wish to be seen. It could be said then, that I show the outside world the inner world I want to live in. Put simply: My clothes create a context for the story of my soul.

Art, much like fashion, is often lacking in context, being in and of itself an abstraction. That is a limited window, a finite or “framed” view that the artist is attempting for you to see. It is interesting to me, however, that it is actually impossible to view a piece of art out of context. By the laws of reality, one must be somewhere in order to view something. As much as we would like to pretend we are not in our house in front of the computer, or in the grocery store looking at a magazine, those are the contexts in which we are viewing whatever it is we are looking at. Even as the artist is attempting to remove you from where you are into his or her painting, one must assume that you were somewhere to begin with. This starting point is very important, for it is the gateway from which you are entering the abstraction the artist has created. Michelangelo did not paint God touching man on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel just because it was a handy, upside-down bowl shape 68 ft in the air.

Museums then, if they are true to their mission, should be created in such a way that the patron feels a clear palette palate and a fresh hunger to view what the curator has displayed (perhaps more for the benefit of the collector-artist relationship, than to the praise of the curator) while still of course participating in the great artistic discourse of our time. barf. All that to say: there are many ways to approach the creation and operation of the contextual platform that is a gallery.

If my clothes contextualize the story of my soul, then a gallery shall be the clothing in which our art is wrapped. The goal here is for you to understand that story, for that story to connect to you and help you tell your story. That way (hopefully) the context of the abstraction becomes your living room or your kitchen or the ceiling of your church. Most gallery owners will tell you that they want the art to stick out (duh), that the gallery should not be a distraction and in fact should push you into the art. Much in the same way I don’t want my clothing to distract you from knowing me, it then becomes a tool that gives you an approachable characterization from which you approach thoughts of me.

The floors, the windows, the lighting, the architectural viewpoints created by the floor plan, the arrangement of the art in relation to itself: all of these things combine to produce a very concrete and measurable context that is the gateway to the abstraction that is the art. It may seem like a simple formula of lights, camera, action, but the psychology behind a constantly changing gallery is complex and while my humble friends in the business may quickly deny it, I believe it is an art in and of itself.

While there are a handful of startup galleries appearing in Tacoma, I would like to suggest two in particular, partially because in my opinion they are fine examples of the art of the gallery, and partially because their approaches are significantly different in scope and feel. ArtWalk is on February 21st, both of these galleries will have brand new exhibits and both of them will be open until 10pm. Take a look at the reasonably priced side of Tacoma’s art scene, both places usually poor you a glass of wine and slice you some cheese for your cracker.

Fulcrum Art-Space
1308 Martin Luther King Jr. Way

“First Glimpse”
New work by Steven Naccarato

Opening Reception
February 21, 2008, 6pm-10pm

The Helm
760 S. Broadway

“Soap Land”
New work by Issei Watanabe

Opening Reception
February 21, 2008, 5pm-10pm

Filed under: DB

13 comments

  • grubedoo February 12, 2008

    As far as the gallery thing goes, I’ll have to check them out. And as for the clothes thing, that’s why I like to be naked.

  • Sassy McButterpants February 12, 2008

    Grubedoo, Ooohlala!

  • Davest February 12, 2008

    I like your idea of a gallery clearing one’s pallet. To approach a showing like a wine tasting with something bland between pieces to reset for the next item. Maybe some windows or white space between works to allow one a moment to let the piece resolve. Kinda like the dead air at the end of a classical piece of music when played on public radio. Great insights.

  • RR Anderson February 12, 2008

    The best clothes are the ones my grandma gives me “because they dont fit grandpa anymore” or “Grandpa won’t wear it because it doen’t have a pocket for his glasses”

    Oh yes. The best.

  • Davest February 13, 2008

    But do they smell like grampa? My pops always smelled like burma shave

  • Steve Naccarato February 13, 2008

    Daniel, thank you for your support of what Oliver is doing with his new gallery and for your work as well. All of this makes Tacoma a more interesting place to live and work. My best, Steve

  • Tressie February 14, 2008

    sometimes I have trouble not giggling.
    I look forward to Febs artwalk.
    I will wear clothes and lots of them and they will say, Tressie likes to be warm.
    Hey, I blogged last week on this very subject !
    gee, I love artists.
    I r one.

  • Mofo from the Hood February 18, 2008

    Mr. Blue, I’ve read these thoughts of yours in several different contexts.

    I’ve read this piece in the morning, in the afternoon, in the early evening, and in the late evening. I’ve this before breakfast. After lunch. After dinner and then an hour later after a rootbeer.

    I’ve read this piece wearing a t-shirt and jeans; and barefoot. I’ve read it with two t-shirts, a sweatshirt and a wool cap and jeans and two pairs of socks and hiking boots.

    I’ve read it in daylight and with my apartment windows open. I’ve read at night with kitchen flourescent lights on and the baseboard heaters set at mid-point.

    I’ve read with music by Miles Davis. I’ve read it in silence. I’ve read it in near silence except for the sound of my Japanese young lady friend in the next apartment shutting her kitchen cabinets.

    And ya know, I started thinkin’ about the years that I produced the fresh sheets for the ArtWalk; back in the mid-90’s. So now after just reading your article again, and long since I’ve attended an actual ArtWalk, I think I might have a look at some of the current art showing February 21st.

  • Daniel Blue February 19, 2008

    mofo, if you are reading my stuff that much i think you might be obbsessed with me. im cool with that, but you really need to get honest with yourself about it and tell me more about your japanese young lady friend, is she blonde by any chance?

  • Janice February 19, 2008

    When I read “…a clear palette and a fresh hunger to view what the curator has displayed …” I assumed because of the SPELLING, that you meant that thing an artist uses to mix paint on, rather than the PALATE one commenter refers to — as in Clearing the Palate during a wine tasting.

    To avoid further confusion:
    palate, palette, or pallet? Do not confuse the spelling of palate, palette, and pallet, which sound similar. A palate is the roof of the mouth, or a personal sense of taste, as in the soft palate, dishes to please all palates. A palette or pallet is a board for an artist’s paints, or the colors available on a computer display. As well as meaning “an artist’s palette,” pallet also denotes a tray on which to stack loads, a board on which to dry ceramics, a tool with which to mix clay, or a straw-filled mattress.

  • Whitney staff February 19, 2008

    Janice,

    So sorry for the confusion. As an editor I should have caught the spelling error. It’s been fixed and hopefully I’ll be more on par next time.

    Whitney

  • RR Anderson February 19, 2008

    yeah Mofo, more comments like this and people will think you’re wacky.

  • Mofo from the Hood February 19, 2008

    RR A @12: “yeah Mofo, more comments like this and people will think you’re wacky.”

    Think I’m wacky?…I thought that was understood.

    Anyway, Mr. Blue’s Corner is the place where everybody brings their friendship and generates a little existential art (I don’t know what that means, but it sounds important).

    And to Mr. Blue, no I’m not obsessed with you. My lady friend has brown hair with blonde streaks. And no, the carpet doesn’t match the drapes.