Before I started University I was a keen artist; I took Art as an A
Level and enjoyed painting and sketching. Trips to art galleries were one of my
favourite pastimes, and I maintained an interest in certain artists.
So it came as a surprise that, throughout my undergraduate degree, I had
never once visited the John Hansard Gallery on campus. The gallery was established
in 1979, and remains one of the UK’s leading public galleries of contemporary
art. On their website, they claim to be ‘a place to visit for extraordinary
experiences, where you can see and think about the world differently’,
and they hold five exhibitions a year on the Highfield campus, along with
city-wide and touring shows. They aim to produce a wide range of shows to
appeal to everyone, and state that: ‘Rooted
in a research-led ethos, our programme seeks to bring together rigorous
scholarship and contemporary art practice, presented to the widest possible
audience’. Educational and enjoyable, the John Hansard Gallery is a
local venue to enjoy the world of art, whatever your taste. So it really was
about time that I made a point of visiting!
Me in front of the John Hansard Gallery on campus on a rare sunny
spring morning.
The gallery can be found just past the Health Centre, near the Turner
Sims Concert Hall
I went along to the gallery on a very warm and sunny Tuesday morning
with my friend Olivia who, in her first year, managed to see what the Hansard
had to offer earlier than I had! We entered as soon as it opened, at 11am, and
had a chat with the girl at the front desk who was incredibly helpful. After
discussing a little bit about the show, we were given a sheet with all the
information we’d need, and headed into the gallery.
The first thing that struck me was how professional the gallery looked.
As a small venue, I had anticipated a tiny gallery not unlike those I had
visited in quiet villages before. This was a huge underestimation on my part.
Stepping into Gallery 1 (the main installation room) was like entering a London
gallery. We forgot that we were, in fact, still on campus, and were sucked into
a cultural hub that felt cut off from the bustle of the University.
The exhibition at this time was called ‘Transformism’ by Melanie
Jackson and Revital Cohen. This finished on 9 March. The exhibition was
described in the Transformism
publication as a show which reflects ‘on
our compulsion to alter and shape the materials, objects and living entities around
us’ - basically exploring the combination of science and technology with
culture and nature. It’s a bit difficult to describe, so here’s an explanation
from the John Hansard website:
“As we develop the tools to
manipulate and engineer new forms and systems of life, the exhibition considers
our historical and contemporary entanglements with nature, technology and the
economy, and how these relationships influence emergent forms in biological and
synthetic matter, through new sculpture, installation and moving image works.”
Transformism looked like a
very intriguing exhibition and I was excited to see what was on offer!
Gallery 1 and 2 were dedicated to Melanie Jackson’s contribution
entitled The Urpflanze (part 2)
which was incredibly abstract. Jackson was inspired by Goethe’s imaginary
primal plant, which ‘contained within
it the potential to unfurl all possible future forms’. This is
comparable to modern science. Jackson’s installation was a cacophony of shapes,
sounds, and screens, which we observed for an extended amount of time. We
listened to the sounds made by materials she had used in her work, such as
paint and clay, and watched as natural images converged with images of
factories and science. The work was impressive, and gave us plenty to discuss.
Jackson had also collaborated with Esther Leslie to create a text in the form
of a comic book called The Ur-Phenomenon
which was free and explained her concept further.
A panoramic view of The
Urpflanze (Part 2) in Gallery 1 – I had special permission to take photos,
but wasn’t allowed to focus on specific installations.
It was a little daunting at first but, once we had sat in the middle of
the gallery to gain a different perspective, we had made our mind up about what
the exhibit was saying, and moved into Gallery 2, which held reading material
from the first part of The Urpflanze.
Me enjoying some of the artwork in Jackson’s installation
Galleries 3 and 4 were dedicated to the work of Revital Cohen, who was
concerned with the genetic modification of fish in Japan to make them visually
pleasing. In fact, she saw fish as ‘animal as product’, and the documentary
video of a Japanese fish competition and sale depicted a culture which was
unfamiliar to us but fascinating. The goldfish were seen as art, and were
discussed as looking ‘fashionable’.
Cohen then created an animated fish bowl, with us able to look down into
a bowl of water to see two projected images of goldfish – like those in the
documentary – swimming in synchronised fashion. This highlighted the modified
and scientific design of the fish, and the almost unnatural breeding of them.
It was fascinating and very informative, and definitely gave us both something
to think about for the rest of the day. Fortunately we were also shown a video
interview with both Cohen and Jackson who explained their work – which cleared
up any uncertainties we had!
We thoroughly enjoyed our visit to the John Hansard Gallery – it was a
lovely break from the hustle and bustle of university life, and was completely
free! I really recommend a visit before you leave university – I’m glad I did
and I hope to go back again before I graduate. It just goes to show how many
opportunities we have on campus here at Southampton – there’s something for
everyone, whatever your interest. If you’re like me, and gave up art for your
degree subject, it’s a good way to maintain your hobby.
Unfortunately, Transformism
has finished. The next exhibition is entitled Performance / Audience / Film and runs from 26 March 2013 to 20 April
2013. This will look at the relationship between audience and performance, with
material stretching back to the 1970s and discussions on the interaction
between artist and audience. The John Hansard Gallery Central is also holding
its final exhibition from 19 March to 17 April 2013 called Juneau Projects: I am the Warrior which is an open submission
exhibition to celebrate creativity. The John Hansard Gallery Central is on the
Civic Centre Road in Southampton city centre. Entrance to the John Hansard
Gallery is free.
For more information on all exhibitions and opening times, visit the
gallery website: http://www.hansardgallery.org.uk/
The John Hansard Gallery has free admission and is open Tuesday to
Saturday, with varying opening times.
Joanne
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