As
mentioned countless times before, every person who views art will have a
different opinion of art. When visiting sites such as museums and galleries,
you look at art and decide whether or not you like it, and whether or not you
understand it. When you are taking in a work of art, you tend to also decide if
you would keep this piece or not for yourself. Good art has that great effect
on people, it places itself in a position to be pondered and considered about
deeply.
Upon visiting the David Zwirner gallery in
Chelsea, and observing the Yan Pei-Ming exhibition, I took on the role of both
investor and art-lover. It could have been the bad news that I had gotten that
week, but Pei-Ming’s dark paintings spoke out to me and fed into my emotions. The
piece “Pablo, really impacted me in a way that made me feel almost as if my
soul was a part of the painting. The way the man in the painting is on his
knees, looking away as if in embarrassment while asking for forgiveness, really
connected with the emotions I was feeling at the time. The use of overall very
dark colors and the feeling of negative emotion intrigued me in a way that made
me want to even purchase the piece. I would invest in this piece even if it
reminded me of a negative event in my life because I feel everything we go
through in life happens for a reason and you learn something from it. I definitely
learned from the experience I just went through, and I feel that if I invested
in this piece I would store it for myself to remind myself of a time where I went
through a rough situation and still learned something from it. A similar piece
that although did not speak to me as loudly as “Pablo” but still spoke
similarly by Pei-Ming, was “Moonlight”, just because it had a similar effect on
my emotions but in a more calming way. I’ve always loved looking into the night
sky, because it reminds me that another day of light is near. Seeing a painting
that was based on the night’s sky and moon, gave me a more calming feeling that
I would be alright. I feel that this work I would keep in an exhibition because
I would hope that someone would be able to feel the same calming relief that I
felt.
As
strongly as I feel about collecting Pei-Ming’s work, I also feel strongly about
not collecting certain works I encountered upon visiting the Sonnabend gallery.
The pieces I encountered from the Gilbert & George collection I found interesting,
but not enough to make me want to invest. To be specific, I found the pieces
very repetitive. Although I understand that that was most likely the artists’
idea for the exhibition, I felt overwhelmed by the same theme over and over.
Pieces like “Bombey Straight” and “Battle Straight” I found almost identical. I
feel as if perhaps if the artists had used less of the same format and perhaps
other techniques of expressing their message, then I would have found the
exhibition worth investing in. I am not a fan of sameness, and I would not keep
pieces such as these although their messages are powerful because I do not like
too much of one thing kept together. I like variety, I like having options. I
would prefer pieces that are themed together to complement one another rather than
many pieces that are almost identical all in one space.
Opinions
on these works may vary, but as someday a potential collector and as a current admirer
of art, I feel strongly about my reasons for the way I feel and connect with
these pieces. It was a great experience to have the opportunity to visit these
galleries and have a chance to view these works in a different feel.
Yan Pei-Ming
“Pablo”
2011
Yan Pei-Ming
“Moonlight”
2011
Gilbert & George
“Bombey Straight”
2011
Gilbert & George
“Battle Straight”
2011
