MoMA Artists

Olafur Eliasson - "I only see things when they move"

I was really drawn to this work because of its visual resemblance to a lamp.  A bright light mounted on a tripod is masked all around by color filters that are suspended from the ceiling.  The light projects all the different colors onto the wall in bands.  As the suspended filters gently move and rotate, the bands increase and decrease in width, creating a psychedelic environment on the walls.  The light projected seems to function like paint, coloring the walls, but they are constantly changing, and theoretically, you could rearrange the colored filters to create different combinations for customizable wall decor.  This is from a functional perspective, of course.  The title of the piece refers to a kind of blindness, or a lack of sight except for in movement.  I learned in high school that the first thing the human eye sees is movement, preceding light and color.  However, all three elements are essential in this piece, and they seem to be harmoniously intertwined.

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x5ffl0_i-only-see-things-when-they-move-20_creation

Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller - "The Killing Machine"
I think the automated-ness of this project is what makes it so odd and interesting.  The viewer approaches the piece and presses a red button.  Music begins to play, the lights extinguish except for a spotlight in the center of the piece, and the robotic parts begin to operate.  The music is very eerie, reminiscent of the scores from animations of The Brothers Quay.  The robot arms begin moving around near the dentist chair centerpiece, functioning without any human presence.  They seem to be examining the chair.  The spotlight and silence other than the movements of the robots makes me feel like I am watching a play.  Then, the bright spotlight reduces and blue and red lights appear.  The music changes entirely, into a heavy metal type of sound.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ak6Ldat9yto




Leo Villareal - "Field"
My favorite piece is Villareal's "Field".  His piece consists of tons of LED lights organized into a large rectangle and mounted on the wall.  A layer of semi-opaque material covers the LEDs, diffusing the light, and making the sections of colors appear blob-like.  The LEDs change colors, and the blob formations evolve and change color.  Something technical and harsh like LED lighting is transformed into a beautiful, organic haze of colors that are very pleasing to the eye.  With the title, "Fields", I was thinking he was referring to the Color Field Painting movement, such as Mark Rothko's color block paintings, which include soft-edged blobs of color on canvas in a vertical hierarchy.  I imagine Villareal's "Field" as a modern and digital interpretation of the movement.


http://vimeo.com/3077827