Visual Art
‘THE POSITIVITY YOU PROJECT AT THE WORK BLOSSOMS'
Double Life
Jo sory
AlexanYer Kennedy is entranced by new animations and
paintings by KATY DOVE, in which a spirit of optimism reigns.
‘ ptimism‘ is such a depressing word. It seems O to emphasise the darkness of the present and
our human need for bad faith to get us through. But it's difficult not to accuse Katy Dove's show at the Talbot Rice Gallery of anything more sweetly fitting. What is it within this abstract work that makes the viewer read it as optimistic and uplifting. when there are no overt cues within it to justify the claim'.’
(‘olours and forms liberated from the theoretical shackles of Kandinsky‘s “Concerning the Spiritual in Art' are brought into play. but there is no plan to take over the universe with a new aesthetic (De Stijl artists gave it a go and got as far as Utrecht). She excels in pure abstraction. demonstrated in ‘Gondla‘. which is the most resolved piece in the show. with abstract forms growing. spinning. appearing and disappearing — a dance of pigment and light following its own self- perpetuating narrative. The directional and dynamic lines and forces of Futurism. Cubism. Rayonism pull and push candy-coloured repeating patterns and forms across the screen. Pleasurable passive looking becomes active. happy thought: the positivity you project at the work blossoms. The piece was created for Art Basel 2005. and uses music by the Japanese band World Standard to great effect. We are presented with an abstract mini-opera. a lUlrl/klllt.\‘ltt'(’l‘k in a three and a half minute pop format.
‘Amanda‘. another three minute animated epic. is accompanied by well-chosen music by Glasgow band Hassle Hound. In this piece Dove makes marks and paints directly onto celluloid. attempting to record her
94 THE LIST 2-16 Mar 2006
synaesthetic reaction to the music. where sound. light and colour merge. guiding her automatic drawing. ()palcsccnt colours fan over the screen. chasing the musical score and leaving vapour trails in their wake.
Non-objective work forces the viewer to create relationships between formal components. and between oneself and the object itself (the artist. as instigator. is elsewherel. In this way “a who‘." (sic). Boon tl)\'l) animation with sound). enacts an unpeopled psychodrama. where repeating forms and overlapping planes create points of concentration before resolving. unfolding and falling back into fragments. The music that accompanies 'a who‘ drips in from behind the viewer — the artist repeats the title of the piece. with a flute and the sound of water creating a hy pnotie mantra that follows the flow of the action before you. This specially commissioned piece fills the main gallery space. and is taken from watercolour paintings on linen. The coarse medium does not translate as well into a translucent projection. but the paintings that inspired the piece. also on show. work well.
Our faith in a positive ltunsni'u/lwi was crushed in the first half of the leth century: after two world wars. artists dealing with pure abstraction freed from the overtly political were forced to abandon their utopian project. Dove takes up the discarded gauntlet and wears it well. A hundred years of scientific progression. a hundred years of barbaric regression dissolve fora split second. and another way of living is glimpsed.
Katy Dove, Talbot Rice Gallery, University of Edinburgh, until Sat 8 April 0000
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THE BEST EXHIBITIONS '
* Luke Fowler An exhibition of new work by the Glasgow- based artist. Fowler continues his deconstructive analysis of the relationship between archive. documentary and art, focusing this time on the story of the Scratch Orchestra. unpicking the political and aesthetic problems that haunted the troop. The Modern Institute. Glasgow until Sat 18 Mar See page 95.
* Katy Dove The artist exhibits a specially commissioned animation and two animated musical collaborations created last year. The paintings. prints and drawings that inspired the short films are also on display. and present abstract forms that pick up where Klee and Kandinsky left off. Repeating patterns and uplifting music create mini epics for the viewer to be inspired by. Talbot Rice Gallery, the University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, until Sat 8 Apr. See review, opposite.
3|! What makes you and l different A collection of work in different media exploring the theme of ‘self‘ and ‘other' — the self-portrait as a representation of the ‘other'. The artists chosen include Cindy Sherman, Mathew Barney, Mat Collishaw, Melanie Smith and Wood and Harrison. amongst many more. Expect photography, sculpture and video projections to bridge the gap between ‘you’ (the viewer) and ‘them' (the artists). Tramway. Glasgow, until Sun 26 Mar.
* Rent Horn In this photographic installation the artist has recorded the ever changing appearance of similar things. Portraits are exhibited alongside images of the Thames. owls and icebergs which also demonstrate subtle changes. where things are the same but different. Inverleith House. Edinburgh, until Sun 19 Mar.