http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNzyCrxBb-w
The gallery
space can often be considered secondary to an artwork and not really that
important at all. I believe that this
attitude towards a space can also bleed into the viewers experience with the
art that is presented in that particular space.
“Watch Your Step” examines what the gallery space is and what its
purpose is, and whether it and the artwork within it can be something more than
the expected.
The installation
before you is constructed to resemble a normal gallery space, with four walls,
a floor and a ceiling, but with the noted exception of there being no form of
traditional art on display. However,
there are pressure sensors under the floor, that when tread upon will trigger a
recording to play randomly from hidden speakers in the walls of the
installation. It is an interactive
multimedia installation, but more than anything it’s meant to be fun. The interaction is crucial to whether or not
the work is successful, and forms the main focus of the project. The aim is to see how the viewer will
interact with the work, a supposedly empty room, how they place themselves within
the context of the white empty walls of the gallery, and their reaction and response
to the recordings they unknowingly trigger as they move through the space.
This unexpected
interaction with a seemingly autonomous and empty room will hopefully make the
viewer think about the space as an integral part to how art is perceived and
experienced. The encounter the work creates is designed to build a
relationship with the viewer without the influence and baggage of a traditional
form of art present. A relationship that
is more playful and surprising than any gallery space has been before. So don't be shy when approaching the
installation, feel adventurous and have some fun.
