Exhibition Review - Speed and Art Museum

Alex Pace

Professor Kutis

Contemporary Art

24 September 2017

Exhibition Review

            This exhibition review is over the Jim and Irene gallery- inside the Modern and Contemporary section at the Speed and Art Museum in Louisville. I chose this gallery over the others due to my interest in the works of art presented. Because of my interest in graphic design, I was able to identify elements within the works that could relate to my field of study. Within many of these works were patterns, lines, geometric shapes, and color used to create organic shapes. The artists in this section seemed to appreciate the difficulty of creating a piece of art as well as having the skill to bring interest to their pieces.  

            The first piece of art that attracted me was Ilya Bolotowksy’s Vertical Red Diamond (1976). Bolotowsky is well known for taking shapes and layering them in order to create ornate patterns and using color to bring emphasis to his central focus. He uses clean lines and bright paints to create his pieces, which is something you seen in the graphic design field. There is a white bar towards the center of the painting which draws your eyes in, but to the right side, there is a light blue bar and to the left a deep blue bar, which assist in carrying your eyes around the painting. This artist could be speaking to the clashing of America during the years this painting was created, due to the piece being created only a year after the Vietnam War had come to conclusion. This was a time when many Americans alienated the government and military, due to longing for piece. Similar works of art to this geometric painting were displayed as well, such as Frank Stella’s Chocorua II (1966).

            Frank Stella’s work attracted me as well, due to the similarity of graphic design. Related to Ilya Bolotowsky’s Vertical Red Diamond, Frank Stella’s Chocorua II has sharp lines and clean edges and relies heavily on color. When looking at the image, initially you will see two shapes only, a triangle and square. As you look closer, the image begins to unravel into multiple shapes. The goal of this artist is not to create a symbolic meaning, but to make the viewer find stability in his work. He quipped, “What you see is what you see”. His goal was for people to stop and observe out of interest, not attempt to find a deeper meaning to his work. Some of the works drew my interest due to the skill required to create them. One particular piece attracted me due to the correlation of architecture, art, and attention to detail.

            A piece by Matt Mullican displayed in this gallery by the name of Untitled (1989) greets you as soon as you enter the gallery through the main hall. This work displays great attention to detail and architectural understanding. The use of a yellow canvas and black oil slick creates better emphasis than a white canvas would, due to the balance of color and darkness. The painting appears to be of an empty factory. A similar piece to this is one of a generator room. He creates his pieces while under hypnosis. This piece attracted me due to the amount of time and skill that is required, this obvious due to the depth of field and amount of detail in the background and foreground. Mullican obviously spent a lot of time creating this multi-paneled work and was successful at creating a piece that draws all of the attention in the room.

            This exhibition displayed many interesting works of art. There were no pieces that were exactly alike, but the way the curators arranged the pieces, your interest was drawn around the room. Of all the exhibitions of contemporary art this one felt the most diverse. Some exhibitions were only photographs and others were all based around one subject. This exhibition contained three-dimensional art, painting, photographs, and mixed media. The organization of the space in the room, through the use of paintings and three-dimensional pieces, created an open environment to experience the diversity of subjects presented.