Images from the Venice Biennale

Images from the Venice Biennale

The publicity surrounding the opening of the Turner prize exhibition in Gateshead has reminded me of some of the exhibits I saw at the Venice Biennale. I have been thinking about contemporary conceptual art and, more generally, about my responses and expectations when visiting exhibitions and galleries. Sometimes I’m delighted and inspired, sometimes I’m given food for thought; at other times I think: ‘so what?’ and, sadly, sometimes I think: ‘that was just a waste of time.’

I get irritated when artists seem hell bent on ‘shaking me out of my complacency’ or, as they love to say: ‘challenging preconceptions’. The room with plasticine stuck on the wall by visitors is case in point: it was ugly, taught me nothing and seemed to display no evidence of skill or talent on the part of the artist.

The animated heads and the human candle were more interesting and displayed more evidence of skill than many exhibits that I saw. The UK pavilion allowed visitors to take an uncomfortable trip through a dusty labyrinth; this installation was more of an exercise in construction than art. The artist’s idea was more important than his skill and the fact that wordy explanations need to accompany the work doesn’t help: visual art should have a visual impact that works on its own.

George Shaw’s entry for the Turner prize at least seems to be skilfully painted but the images are grim; why does it all have to be so heavy and miserable? I don’t need to travel to Gateshead to see paintings of depressing council estates; I can see the real thing much closer to home.

"I had rather have a fool to make me merry than experience to make me sad:and to travel for it too!"

Or perhaps a better line would be:

Dost thou think, because thou art virtuous, there shall be no more cakes and ale?

However, to end on a positive note, here’s an image from the Biennale that I thought was amazing. It is a tapestry based on a photograph of the crowd at a concert and I would certainly travel a long way to take another look at it.