“One of our primary goals is for Virginia MOCA to be
recognized as THE museum to view the art of now. We want our name associated
with not only what’s happening in the art world, but what’s on the forefront,”
says Debi Gray, executive director of the Virginia Museum of Contemporary Art,
located in Virginia Beach.
“Elemental”
(through August 18), is an exhibit by internationally renowned sculptor Brian
Dettmer, whose C.V. is replete with shows from across Europe as well as the
U.S., Canada and Mexico. Dettmer uses outdated mass-produced books such as
encyclopedias, medical guides and atlases that are, in his words, “rich with
information and ideas.” While modern information gathering has become
distinctly non-linear thanks to the Web, with knowledge and ideas seeming to
float around in the air above our computer screens, books are physical,
tangible and linear sources of information. By appropriating and altering these
dinosaurs of form and content, Dettmer redefines them, making them into
something quite different. No longer dormant closed objects, images and words
now explode forth from within. Dettmer’s intricately carved pieces, call to
mind scrimshaw or the inner workings of a clock; certainly not the books,
cassettes and maps they once were. They’ve been transformed from their previous
incarnation into contemporary sculptures to be exhibited and admired, giving
them relevance once again.
Dettmer sees his work as a collaboration with the existing
material. After first sealing a book’s edges, he then uses knives, tweezers and
surgical tools to quite literally dissect it, exposing various layers and
cutting around words, ideas and images that he stabilizes with varnish. It’s a
bit like a treasure hunt. He can’t control what’s coming as he excavates the
layers, but he can react to it. Nothing is added or moved around inside the
book, only taken away. When he’s done, the relationship between the internal
elements has been completely changed into a very different reality from that
which existed in the original with new meanings, patterns and interpretations.
What’s left is a visually rich and complex object that renews our wonder in the
magic of these informational artifacts.
In 2010, Virginia MOCA joined that exclusive club of museums
accredited by the American Alliance of Museums, an honor bestowed on less than
5 percent of all U.S. museums. Gray shepherded the institution through the
final phase of the demanding accreditation process. Excellence in programming
is key, but also vital is a state-of-the-art facility. Virginia MOCA has both.
Completed in 1989, the impressive E. Verner Johnson and
Associates-designed building, which sits on a wooded site just six blocks from
the ocean, has a vaguely Asian feel. The 38,500 square foot building was
constructed with particular forethought for the museum’s primary activities—exhibitions,
studio art classes, events and private functions. The 6,300 square feet of
exhibition space is equipped with a flexible movable system of wall panels,
permitting spaces to be arranged as needed. Daylight from clerestory windows
can be regulated by electric solar shades. And it’s not all window dressing.
Behind the scenes, there’s ample exhibit staging area including workshop, and
art and crate storage areas. And, of course, the galleries are precisely
climate controlled.
It’s a far cry from Virginia MOCA’s modest beginnings. In
1952, a group of local artists organized an art sale to benefit Winifred Nixon
Greene, a local watercolorist who had had a debilitating stroke. After the
success of the event, the artists founded the Virginia Beach Art Association.
In the beginning, the VBAA held summer art classes, lectures and exhibitions in
libraries and schools until eventually, they acquired a small oceanfront
facility at a former municipal office building at 1916 Arctic Avenue In 1956,
VBAA presented the first Boardwalk Art Show. Situated along the oceanfront
boardwalk, the annual four-day event has become wildly successful with an
average attendance of 200,000 and a “Best in Show” prize of $10,000. It’s
ranked #34 in national outdoor art shows by Sunshine
Magazine and is a major fundraiser for Virginia MOCA.
“MOCA is making strides in distinguishing ourselves as a top
national museum destination.” says Gray. She points to “Contemporary Magic: A
Tarot Deck Project (May 30-August 18)” recently included in The Huffington Post’s Summer Art Preview’s
must-see exhibits along with shows at such prominent museums as the Museum of
Modern Art, the Guggenheim, MCA Denver and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. “This
national attention is exactly where MOCA wants to be.”
No comments:
Post a Comment