More Related Content
Recently uploaded
Recently uploaded (20)
Featured
Featured (20)
Concannon.FieldNotes.2
- 1. NEW MUSEUM FIELD NOTES II Ethnographer: Brittany Concannon Date: Sunday, October 16th 2016 Time: 4:00 P.M. - 6:00 P.M. (2 hours)
- 2. 4:00P.M. Iwalktotheticketcounterandam energeticallygreetedbyanemployeewho thenexplainsthatthe“museumisin transitionsotodayispay-as-you-wish.” Ihad plannedto gatherdataonconversationsat thecafé,soIorderablackicedteafromtwo employeesdiscussinganarticleaboutgender equalityandsitonthecushylog-likestools. I quicklyrealizethatImayhaveadifficulttime findingsuchconversations,sincetheman nearesttomeisdrawinginhissketchbook whilespeakingsoftlyintohisearpiece,and themanfarthestfrommeisbrowsing throughhiscomputerinalanguageother thanEnglish. Fiveminuteslater, acouple enters,ordersfromthetwofemalebaristas, sitsatstoolsnearme,andbeginstoconverse inPortuguese. Meanwhile,anotherman walksintothecafé,checkshisphone,and leaves. Inthebackground,wherepartofThe Keeperexhibitiononceresided,I seethat therearetwoscreensattachedtothewall, showingloopedvideoclips. Myattentionis drawntothescreeninfrontofme,which featuresayoung,Blackmanrestingagainsta bridge,wonderingaloud,“WhyamIhere?”in EnglishandMandarinsubtitles.
- 3. 4:17P.M. Acouplewalksintothecafé,oneof whomiscarryingalarge,professional camera. Heglancesintotheroomwiththe screensbeforeasking,“Whereisthe bathroom?” Thetalleremployee immediatelyresponseswith“downthe stairs,”whilepointingtothestairsbehindthe couple. Anothermanenterstheroomwith thescreens,picksupascreenthatisonthe floorandbeginstoattachittoawallinthe backcorner. Sincethere havebeenveryfew groupsofpeopleinthecafésofar,Idecideto trytoeavesdroponconversationsinother partsofthemuseums. Ifirstmovepastthe cafécountertodisposeofmyemptycupand noticehoworganizedthesugar,utensils,and honeyareforthebeverages,soIsnapaquick photographoftheselabeled,well-stocked supplies. Ialsotakeaphotographofthe labeled“TRASH”and“BOTTLESAND CANS”containers,becauseIhavealways appreciatedwheninstitutions genuinely supportcustomerrecyclingwitheasy-to- understandlabels.
- 4. 4:30P.M. Igointotheelevatoratthesametime asamancarryingawhitebucketanda womanclutchingamuseumtour pamphlet. Whenthedoorsopenatthe thirdfloor,boththewomanandIlean forwardtoviewthemanystringsofcolor- shiftinglightsthathangfromtheceiling. Noticingourcuriosity,themanexplains that“thisfloorisclosedfornow.” Iquickly sneakaphotographoftheseshimmering lights,sothatIhaveacomparisonpoint whenthisexhibitionopens. Itis interestingtoseeevenamomentofwhat happensbehindthescenesofcreating theseexhibitions. Whodesignstheset-up oftheseexhibitions—theartists themselves,hiredcurators,otherlocal artists,or acombinationofthe possibilitieslistedabove? Imakeashort noteinmyI-Padtoattempttoaskthese questionsatsomepointduringamuseum tourintheupcomingweeks.
- 5. 4:33P.M. Theelevatordoorsopenintoadimly- lightroomwhereahigh-pitchedsinging of“wee-ooh”accompaniesakeyboard melody. Ifirstglimpseawomanchasing afteratoddler,whisper-shouting,“No, no,baby,no”andthenliftingthechildto herhipbeforepressingtheelevator button. Myattentionisdrawnto the beautiful,black-and-whitemuralsthat depictgroupsofpeopleinvarious stances. Likeforthelastexhibitionthat wassetupintheroom(TheWaiting Room),therearepamphletsthatexplain theartists’perspectivesandworkshopsin greaterdetails. Iwonderifthisroom generallydisplaysartworkthatis connectedwithactivismandcommunity- centeredactivities. Itakeapamphlet,but insteadreadthelargepanelnexttothe glasstitle,whichinformsmethattheMy Barbarianartistgroupstartedthis explorationin“radicaltheatre”eightyears agothroughtheNewMuseum.
- 6. 4:41P.M. Iwalkpastthemuralstowherebulky televisionswereoncearrangedtodiscover threenewflatscreensattachedtothebrown- orangewalls. Therearenopanelsexplaining whateachofthescreensisshowing. Instead, thereisasigninthefarthestcornerofthe roomthatdisplaysinkdrawingsofpeople utilizingthefivepracticesofradicaltheatre: “estrangement,indistinction,suspensionof beliefs,mandatetoparticipate,and inspirationalcritique.” Unlikefortheother twoscreens,therearenoheadphonesforthe screeninthemiddle,sothatallcanhearthis videoclipinwhichparticipantschant “suspensionofbeliefs”andtogethersupport thebodyofapeer. Thisactivityremindsme of amorenuancedversionoftheexerciseof trustingapartnertocatchapersonasthat personfallsbackwards. Individualpiecesofa scriptwithblackbordersarelocatedbelow thescreens,nexttowhichtherearethree connectedfaces. Reminiscentofthe traditional theatremasks,thesefaceslack anysignofemotion,butinsteadconveya senseofunitythroughcommunity—a possiblethemeofthisexhibition.
- 7. 5:08P.M. Ireturntothecentralroomtofindone mansittingonthepaintedwoodenchairs thatareshapedtospellthetitleofthis project,Post-LivingAnte-ActionTheater (PoLAAT). AsIwalkpasthim,Inoticethathe ischeckingFacebook. IsitononeoftheA’sto brieflywatchthelargescreenwherethis group’sperformancesarebeingscreened withsubtitlesandinaloudvolume. Eventually,anothercouplearrivesfromthe elevatorandmovestowardthesmallroom behindtheintroductorypanel. There,a womanandmanareseparatelyviewing videoclipswithheadphones,whileanother womanisflippingthroughabinderonatie- dyetable. Thecouplesitsdownnexttoeach otherasthewomantellshowshereceiveda bookfromafriend. Afterconversingabout thisbookforthreeminutes,shechangesthe subjectbycommenting,“Ilikealltheglass andwhitewiththeshadow...Ilikethatthe rectanglesneverlineup... Iwonderwhatit means...IknowifItookthetimeallofthis wouldbeinteresting...IthinkrightnowI just don’thavethepatience,butothertimesyes.” Thecoupleexitstheexhibitionaminutelater withdiscussionofdinnerplans.
- 8. 5:24P.M. Afterflippingthroughthebinderwhich hasdividersbutnolabels,Ireturntothemain roomand discernaslotwithwhite, laminatedcardsthatrevealthenameof everypartofthemural. Iamintriguedto learnthattheimagesareorganizedfromleft- to-rightandaccordingtowhichpracticethat theyrepresent. Amanalsotakesoneof thesecardsandlooksatitforasecondbefore returningtoitsslot. Iwonderhowmany peopleactuallyusethesecards,oreven noticethesecards astheyarepositioned diagonallyfromthelargeintroductorypanel andnotclosetoanyotherimages. AsIread thecards,Ibegintocomprehendthatnextto eachtitleisabriefexplanation,someofwhich arehumorouslikethe technique,"TheCast GetsNaked—Neverreallyhappens”and otherswhicharemorereflective,“Youarea detectiveinyourown;discoverwhatyoudo withyourtime.” Whydidthedesigners decidetoorganizeinformationaboutthe muralsinthiswayandtoplacetheminsucha difficult-to-spotlocation?
- 9. 5:32P.M. Ireturntothefirstfloortogotothe bathroomandamsurprisedtofindaflat screenhanginginthelandingbetweenthe stairstothefirstfloorandthestairstothe groundfloor. Ireadfromthetinypanels— whichareinthesamefontasalltheothertiny panelsthatIhaveseeninthismuseum—that thisscreendisplaystwovideos,CreditsandAll MyLoveAllMyLove. Thereisasmallspace butnochairstowatchtheseclips. Ispend almosttenminutesviewingthesescreens, butevenwiththebriefdescriptionsprovided bythepanels,Iamunabletoidentifywhichof thevideoclipsIamenjoying. WhileIstandin thatspot,foursmallgroupswalkpastthe screenwithoutmorethanaglance. I overhearonepersonshare,“Ihaven’tseen thestuffdownstairsandIwanttoseeMy BarbarianbecausewhereIamworking,they hadashowlastyear”towhichhisfriend responds,“OneoftheteachersthatIwork with,Ithink,hasanexhibithere.”
- 10. 5:45P.M. I quicklytaketheelevatortotheseventh floortospendafewminutesintheSkyRoom beforethemuseumcloses. Inoticethat personnearmeis themanwhoaskedtotake aphotographofmyshoesintherainbow lightoftheMyBarbarianroom,soIaskhim whatdidheenjoyaboutthemuseumand whyhevisited. Heexplainsthat“Ihave checkedtheworks,butsofartheskyroomis myfavorite...I’vebeenherebefore,Idon’t rememberwhatIhaveseen...Inevercome witha purpose.” Ithankhimforsharinghis thoughts,beforegoingtothebalconyofthe SkyRoomwhereIcanseethatagroupof peoplearedancingontopoftheroofofa nearbybuilding,playinglivelymusicsoloud thatIcanhearitfromwhereIam. Nexttome acouplehugseachotherlovingly. Theystand likethatuntiltheguardannouncesthat museumisclosingintenminutes. AsIexit,I decidetoaskanothergroupoftwowomen andamanwhytheydecidedtovisitthe museumtoday. Thewomanwithpurplehair respondsthatthey“werewalkingpastand thebuildinglookeddifferent,innovative.” Themanaddsthat“contemporaryartisso differentfromclassic.”
- 11. 5:57P.M. AsIamleaving,Iremember—perhaps asaresultofthegroup’scomments—that Ihavenotyettakenaphotographofthe building’sfaçade. Iwonderifthefont usedforthe“NEWMUSEUM”signwas specificallydesignedforthismuseum, sinceitissimilartothatusedinthepanels. AsIlookup,Inoticeforthefirsttimethat thereisashiponthetopofbuilding,setas ifitisflying. Itremindsmeoftheshipin PeterPan—asymboloftheordinary becomingfantasy,of travelingbetween worlds. Itappearstobeaveryfitting symbolfortheNewMuseum andthe whimsicalityandcuriositythatitvalues.