Oil On Canvas- artist Deborah Hake Brinkerhoff Part of Phillips Gallery Exhibit
Not long ago I sat down with Salt Lake City Arts Council Director Nancy Boskoff to talk about many things, one of them being contemporary art in Salt Lake City. You may not know this about Nancy Boskoff, but 30 years ago, before she became an arts administrative fixture in Salt Lake, she was a modern dancer. She recounts a story of when she choreographed a piece in her previous life, before she moved to Utah.
“I was in the box with the tech crew for one of the rehearsals and one of the guys looked at me and asked, ‘What is this about?’ I told him it wasn’t about anything to which he replied, ‘It has to be about something.’ It turns out he and the rest of the guys on the crew made up a romantic story about the dance. It may not be what I had in mind, but I thought, ‘OK, that’s fine.’ If someone can experience art and take something from it that is meaningful to them, that’s what is important.”
Oil On Canvas- artist Deborah Hake Brinkerhoff Part of Phillips Gallery Exhibit
If you happen to be an arts administrator, whether you work with dance, music or visual art, you understand much of your career deals with what is essentially this conversation over and over again. I primarily work with visual art and I think sometimes people who decide it’s time to take that step beyond traditional landscapes and still lifes (that are really only there to be lovely) assume that contemporary art (that isn’t always pretty) is always about meaning. But sometimes art, even these days, doesn’t mean anything. Shocking, I know. I’ve worked at a gallery for a little over ten years. We exhibit all kinds of artwork: painting, sculpture, photography, installation. Sometimes it’s traditional, sometimes it’s contemporary, sometimes it’s completely conceptual, and sometimes, I simply don’t get it. Yes, I’m admitting it. I’m an art historian, I’m an art administrator, and sometimes, I just don’t get it. I’m saying this to officially invite you to explore your new self. Your self that doesn’t need an answer for everything. Your self that doesn’t need to find meaning in everything and can feel perfectly secure in that. Of course, if you want to find meaning in it, good for you. Go for it. Welcome to contemporary art.
The cool thing about being this person is you don’t have to feel awkward when you visit an art exhibit. It’s not there to intimidate you. It is there to challenge you, and if you don’t get it, that’s OK. If it’s not for you, that doesn’t make you an idiot. Does that mean the artwork is ridiculous? No. Maybe esoteric, but not ridiculous. But that’s for each individual to decide. Try to remember: it’s the inexperienced art connoisseur that believes there’s a right opinion when it comes to art. You don’t have to have an answer and you don’t have to like it. But the experienced art connoisseur is open to it. That’s all you need. Artists explore new ideas all the time. If the meaning of their work is important to them, they’ll share it with you. Most of the time, there will be an artist statement or a brochure that explains their process, their mindset, and their motivation. But if there is no text to help you understand what you’re looking at, you’re on your own buddy. All that means is you can take whatever you want from it. Relax. There is no test afterward.
Gallery Stroll is this Friday, which means it’s the perfect opportunity to check out some contemporary art. Are you ready to experience some art you may not understand? Awesome. Head to Phillips Gallery and check out Deborah Hake Brinkerhoff – a fantastic abstract artist here in Salt Lake City. I’ll even give you a head start by giving you something to read beforehand. 15 Bytes recently published a review of her exhibit.
http://artistsofutah.org/15Bytes/index.php/deborah-hake-brinkerhoff/#comments
Check out the review and then head to Phillips Friday night. Remember, you don’t need to impress your artsy friends with a well-formulated thesis on the artist’s intentions. You just need to have your own opinion. Art will mean different things to different people. That’s what makes it a great topic of discussion. The experience you have with it may be fleeting, or it may stay with you. There is no trick to “getting it”. The only trick to enjoying art is being open to it.
Laura Durham is assistant editor at 15 Bytes, Utah's Art Magazine, and is a contributor for Salt Lake magazine.
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