It is always a delicate balance between the creation of art, and the financial swirl that may or may not surround it. Being at Art Basel and Art Miami made me even more aware of that. For commercial galleries the emphasis on sales and collectors is obvious. But what of museums? The balance between exhibitions and ticket sales must always be on their minds.
This scene at MOMA in New York City last February (2014) illustrates it beautifully.
Above is London-based Isaac Julien’s immersive film installation Ten Thousand Waves. It was astounding to see the vibrant, moving images projected on to 9 double-sided screens on the level above the main entrance lobby and ticket area.
No matter where you went through the museum that day, it would etch into your vision, interweaving contemporary Chinese culture with its ancient myths
Like the person leaning on the railing above on the edge of the Marron Atrium, I would wander in and out of the staging area, being as interested in the music and sounds, as well as its sequenced images.
Below on the main floor of The Museum of Modern Art, people are at the desk waiting for information and tickets, anxious to get to the scene above. Art and commerce…always a tenuous connection.
Ten Thousand Waves was conceived as a “reflection of the movement of people across continents”. A lofty attempt to explore our world. A world that must also include the financial realities of art.
My painting Above and Below, 24 x 36″, oil on linen.
