Shriya NevatiaFishing for Destiny
September 9th 2006 03:27
I heard this true story about a group of nice-looking people who were walking through a car park. The nice-looking people were dressed up to go to a theatre performance or exhibition opening and they were walking through the car park when a man in trench coat accosted them. From inside his trench coat he pulled out a large fish and said to the nice-looking people, ‘give me all your money or I will hit you with this’ and he shook the fish at them menacingly.
Scared and confused and very fearful of their clothes and hair-dos being messed up, the people handed over their cash and the man fled with his fish and his newly acquired wealth through the car park.
This story reveals much about the character of many artyfarts who visit museums and galleries. They know a lot about style, hair product and interpretive dance; threaten them with a string of slime from a week-old Trevally, and they will give you anything you want. I think this is a glowing endorsement for visiting any exhibition.
I confess that I have not tried to take a fish into a gallery but I have sneaked a peanut butter sandwich in my handbag a couple of times.
Your text goes here
When I was viewing Destiny Deacon’s Walk & don’t look blak at the Ian Potter Museum of Art at the University of Melbourne, I was standing by her installation, TV Room, and the gallery cleaner pointed to the floor tapestry and said, ‘I think you’ve dropped yer chips on the floor’. True enough there was bunch of hot chip looking motifs on the tapestry. Then when you put on the head phones, sit in the cozy armchair and watch her DVD Home Movie featuring Destiny Deacon babysitting her nephews and nieces, she’s trying to feed them some home cooked concoction. It looks more like rice than chips, but they’re not having a bar of it and keep chasing a balloon. To which she says ‘bloody’ a lot.
You don’t expect artyfarts to say ‘let go that bloody balloon and eat your bloody tea.’ The entire exhibition is a surprise that way. There’s the thought provoking and visually stunning Postcards from Mummy section of the exhibition alongside her collection of ‘Aboriginalia’ or kitsch Indigenous souvenirs made by Westerners for Western tourists.
There’s also her array of dolls. I went to an opening for another exhibition at the museum and while suited gentlemen were making speeches, Destiny Deacon’s black Dorothy doll was pointing her red sequin shoes at the guests. Suited, or wearing a trench coat, you couldn’t help but be drawn into her unpretentious yet highly provoking destiny.
Scared and confused and very fearful of their clothes and hair-dos being messed up, the people handed over their cash and the man fled with his fish and his newly acquired wealth through the car park.
This story reveals much about the character of many artyfarts who visit museums and galleries. They know a lot about style, hair product and interpretive dance; threaten them with a string of slime from a week-old Trevally, and they will give you anything you want. I think this is a glowing endorsement for visiting any exhibition.
I confess that I have not tried to take a fish into a gallery but I have sneaked a peanut butter sandwich in my handbag a couple of times.
When I was viewing Destiny Deacon’s Walk & don’t look blak at the Ian Potter Museum of Art at the University of Melbourne, I was standing by her installation, TV Room, and the gallery cleaner pointed to the floor tapestry and said, ‘I think you’ve dropped yer chips on the floor’. True enough there was bunch of hot chip looking motifs on the tapestry. Then when you put on the head phones, sit in the cozy armchair and watch her DVD Home Movie featuring Destiny Deacon babysitting her nephews and nieces, she’s trying to feed them some home cooked concoction. It looks more like rice than chips, but they’re not having a bar of it and keep chasing a balloon. To which she says ‘bloody’ a lot.
You don’t expect artyfarts to say ‘let go that bloody balloon and eat your bloody tea.’ The entire exhibition is a surprise that way. There’s the thought provoking and visually stunning Postcards from Mummy section of the exhibition alongside her collection of ‘Aboriginalia’ or kitsch Indigenous souvenirs made by Westerners for Western tourists.
There’s also her array of dolls. I went to an opening for another exhibition at the museum and while suited gentlemen were making speeches, Destiny Deacon’s black Dorothy doll was pointing her red sequin shoes at the guests. Suited, or wearing a trench coat, you couldn’t help but be drawn into her unpretentious yet highly provoking destiny.
Front cover of the exhibition catalogue by Museum of Contemporary Art Sydney
| 68 |
| Vote |
