Thursday, January 3, 2013

Ann Hamilton's The Event of a Thread

I ventured into New York yesterday for Ann Hamilton's The Event of a Thread 
at the Park Avenue Armory. 


One step inside the doors had me stepping aside to let others go by while I just stood 
and took in the massive curtain of movement installed in the middle of the hall.


After a few minutes, I wandered through the people and swings to take a seat at one end.


And then a swing became open.


There were lots of families with little ones, so I soon relented my swing and walked around.


While some stood, some swang (swung? swinged?), others lay on the floor beneath the curtain. 
Yes. I did as well. Those photos will come too.


There were two readers at one end of the hall. The reading material was on roll beneath their table


 and as they slowly read, the paper piled up on the floor in front of them.


 I finally noticed that the upstairs section of the Armory was open. 
Up I went to get a better look at 


 the extensive and elaborate pulley system.



 The tips of the curtain were mesmerizing. 


Eventually, I went back downstairs and lay down again. This time on an end to watch and be. 
I spoke with Pam and hadn't the words to describe the sensation...still don't, not quite.

2+ hours, 400+ photos and 17 videos later, 
I tore myself away and walked back to Grand Central Station...looking at the world a bit differently.
Noticing movement everywhere. Noticing beauty. Noticing art. Noticing life. 

25 comments:

  1. J- just fantastic that your were in the right place at the right time - what a great experience; though I see the usual lack of commitment emerging - how poor only 2hrs, 400+ photos and 17 videos - hardly even got started really. What a brilliant way to start 2013 - well done you. B

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    1. I know...I know. Barry, I am so ashamed of my poor recording of this otherworldly installation. Finger exercises are needed before such future endeavors to keep my finger from cramping while holding down the button in continuous shoot mode. Or maybe duct tape? Yes! That would work nicely, don't you think? Just put a spot of duct tape on the button and photograph away!

      Such is the danger of having a digital camera.

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  2. great art does that -
    it is the most wonderful feeling, isn't it?
    will have to see how long the installation is up - i may just pop in to see it...
    i still kick myself for missing christo in the park... and ai wei wei's zodiac heads...
    it must have been quite magical - was the air moving? or was it still? i guess there was movement, but would love to know -
    am intrigued by the reading material that has THE written down the middle of it!

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    1. Oh most definitely yes. It is a wonderful feeling. I've been extremely lucky in the past few months to experience two exhibits that did that. The other was Martin Creed's Half the Air in Any Given Space in Cleveland. A room half filled with purple latex balloons to venture into.

      The Event of a Thread is up through this Sunday so hurry! The air wasn't moving - no big fans or anything. Instead, the movement of the curtain is caused primarily by the counterbalance system involving the swings. It is a brilliant installation on so many levels.

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  3. love it!
    do tell about the swinging

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    1. Hmmm...the swinging. The swings were wide enough for two. Low, gentle. More simple forward and backward on an even line that the swings on a playground. It was all counterbalanced to move the curtain up and down and every way in between.

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  4. With the photos and videos, maybe words aren't necessary. Perhaps in the case, less is really more and feelings are enough. Wish this was up longer!

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    1. "Perhaps in the case, less is really more and feelings are enough."

      Yes. Next round of photos will be just that. As will the video...once it's edited to respectable length.

      I so wish you had been with me. How about hopping a plane today or tomorrow and we'll go on Saturday? That could work...

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    2. Sorry about the typo...It should be "in THIS case". Don't tempt me, as you know I can pack light!

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    3. Do I need to call your husband? You know he'll just buy the ticket...what time tomorrow should I pick you up?

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  5. Amazing...as are your photos! I tell you...photography is a calling!

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    1. Thank you Julie! Actually...did you know of this while you were in NYC?

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    2. No, but we were on a pretty tight timeframe that day. I will let my brother and sister-in-law know. Bet their kids would love it!

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  6. {{ FabuLouS !!
    thank you for taking me along
    to this Happening ...

    i would have wanted to stay
    on the floor
    ~~~looking up~~~
    forever ...
    seriously !!
    and a swing there !!

    how fortunate you live
    so nearby
    to such amazing arty+treasures !!

    where R you taking us next ?? }}

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    1. On the floor was definitely the best place to be.

      It was like watching that piece of paper that gets caught in a whirlwind and dances through the sky...only better because this dance never ended and you could just lay there and enjoy.

      Yes. I am fortunate to live close to NYC and all it offers. Shame that so much of it is missed...but not this.

      Next? To Pittsburgh and Washington, DC in the spring. Care to join?

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  7. Wow, what a great piece. I so love how the swingers swing back and forth in one direction, people moving, dotting the floor, the fabric I imagine having its own flow. How beautiful!! ( swung, I think, maybe it is? English is curious that way, that we don't know!!) I love the tips - like cloth mountains or iceburgs. I am reminded of lying on the deck of my parents' boat when I was a child, watching the billowing of the sails and feeling that wind move us. So much here, thanks for the inspiration!

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    1. I wonder where the piece took others? For me it was back to summers as a child when my mom or grandmother would hang the laundry out to dry...laying beneath the line and watching the clothes dance in the wind, especially the sheets. Used to love watching those.

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  8. It looks absolutely incredible! What a special thing to have experienced x

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    1. It was incredible and surreal and magical and...

      I'm very lucky to have been able to go. Nearly missed it because I thought it started in January rather than ending. Yikes!

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  9. What an experience, Jennifer! Thank you for giving us the chance to be part of it in some way (better than none at all). Visually, there are so many interesting points of view to see. The awesome installation aside, it's also interesting to see how the people behave & interact with it. Looking forward to more...

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    1. It was a feast for the senses...well, not smell, but certainly all the others. Setting the sheer beauty of it aside, the actual work it took to install must have been mind boggling.

      Just sitting and people watching was fun. Kids wanted to swing and play in the curtain (which was very discouraged). Adults were either enthralled or just didn't get it. There were several couples that I happened to overhear who were split and that made for interesting eavesdropping to see who could sway the other.

      I think those who got it best were the ones on the floor. Or maybe I'm just saying that because of all the time I spent there, watching the curtain dance and being transported to another time, another place...

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    2. I always love the conversations I overhear when visiting an art exhibition - or even simply while out and about in Florence, since there are so many visitors year-round. You hear the craziest things!
      I meant to leave a comment on your video, too - I was absolutely mesmerized by the curtains changing shape...they seemed to take on some wild new form every few seconds. Amazing! Thanks again for sharing your view while lying on the floor.

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    3. I always love eavesdropping a bit on conversations at art galleries or museums, but especially at events such as this. The comments are so varied. I really should have written some of them down. Maybe next time.

      As for the video, I edited a 10 minute video down to 3 to put on the blog. It was amazing to lay at that end and watch the shapes that the curtain billowed into or shrank down into. There were a number of times that it came low enough to cover me and the camera before it danced back up toward the ceiling. Needless to say, it's my favorite.

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  10. I did not get a chance to see this Jennifer. Thanks for bringing it to me!

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    1. Oh no! It's really a shame that you didn't get over to see this. It was beyond amazing. I'm glad to have been able to share my photos.

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