Anri Sala @ the Musee D’Art Contemporain de Montreal
So today I got a sneak peek at the Musee D’Art Contemporain de Montreal winter line up and as always the artists, the Musee and the Musee’s staff put on a stunning and challenging show. Transforming a large parts of the museum main exhibition space into a surreal a dynamic new environment for the viewer to experience. For this particular article I will be concentrating on the work and ideas of Anri Sala, an international Installation artist. Whose work and ideas about installation put my beliefs on what instillation art and art were to the test. This was Sala’s first solo exhibition in Canada as well as his largest in North America.
Mr. Sala’s work which has been recently been acquired by the Musee D’Art Contemporain de Montreal is musically based using sound, light, images and time to create an environment for the viewer to experience. Each viewer experiences something different. To walk into the exhibition space one feels like they are walking into a modern night club, as the room is dimly lit. With darkly projected videos being displayed on the walls, the only light through out the entrance of exhibition space are spotlights highlighting snare drums that lead the viewer from point A to point B. Like a yellow brick road taking the viewer from one space into the next part of the exhibition. On each snare drum lays a set of drum sticks that in intermittent intervals play the drum by themselves. At times in correspondence with the “music” being played either from the video’s being projected or non-congruently over loud speakers. At times the sounds resemble a melody that one might hear at a traditional night club at other times it is like the recordings of an industrial band the likes of Front 242. All of this creates chaos with moments of peace or serenity when music stops. As the viewer watches projections on the wall some works seemingly go together with the rest the “images” showcased in this room, others seem to reference works exhibited in other parts of this show. AS one steps into the other parts of the show the experience is similar (but different) as he utilizes light, color, images and sound, to captivate the audiences imagination. This was not what I found most interesting about the show though.
What I found most interesting was the answers he had to my questions. I had a chance to talk to him as well as his assistants who travelled with him to set up this show. They had been here two weeks prior to the opening preparing. I first met Lewin ,a tall German man, who told me they had travelled all over the world together setting up shows in various places. For their next stop they were off to Mexico. He told that this was how he supported his own practice. I asked whether he made enough to support himself to which he smiled and nodded. Next I met Mr. Sala’s other assistant Frank, who was off to Japan next, he told me he was also an assistant to other artists as well and yes he too made his living solely off artistic endeavors. I asked the questions for reason, a reason even I didn’t know at the time. What I found intriguing was that an instillation artist could travel the world making art as well as paying a living wage to two assistants and so I had to ask the man himself.
Now before anyone starts complaining that I am talking about money again, it not the money that interests me, what interests me is the concept of artists making a VIABLE LIVING of their creative ideas. Especially when it comes to something as abstract as installation art, if you don’t have a space to put it in how can one acquire a work? Yes I am a capitalist just as I am a consumer, just like all of us in this society. So when someone is making art, especially work you can not just buy and hang on your wall, I want to know how you thrive.
So I hit Anri with the hard questions. To which he graciously answered. He said with a sheepish grin he had been a professional artist since he started paying taxes. Contrary to my belief he was not a grant artist, something I assumed as I could see no viable product ( I knew I was looking at art, it’s just how do you take a room home). He stated there where no grants for installations for him (he lives in Berlin). He never told me a number but I would guess he does well enough, seeing as he has two assistants and travels the world. One of his incomes was from videos taken of his installations, another which he never stated but I could see, was from large video stills that hung like pictures and some drawings that hung in other parts of the exhibition. My final question as we spoke at which point I noticed the melody of should “I Stay or Should I Go” by The Clash emitting from one of his videos was “Why the drums?” To which he stated and this is a paraphrase that the sound of the drums vibrates directly inside us and speaks to all of us. He said even if you can not see someone playing the drums but you can hear them you know what they are playing. Satisfied I thanked him for his time and gave my adieu. Wondering where this new found knowledge may lead. I walked through the other exhibitions and enjoyed them both, I came home very inspired to write this work.
A special thanks to Mr. Anri Sala for his time, his assistants for theirs, Chief Curator Marie Fraser for such a fine exhibition and all the staff at the Musee, this work may be alter or edited if the artist or the Musee feel misrepresented. And if you enjoyed this article you can enjoy previous works which can be found on Art+Culture. Mr. Sala’s work can be found through out the world and enjoyed, if you have an exhibition near you I HIGHLY recommend it.
