Found objects as art - the idea is not new - Duhamel's urinal started all that and every year, students at the Degree show produce their own 'found objects' to, I must confess in my case, varying degrees of yawn. But Clausen's work is different - it's all about perception, he says, in his Artist's statement. On the one side of the room is a real skip (donated by a company who read about the project in 'Skip Hire' magazine) but now painted white - tipped on its side and leaning against the equally white background of the wall - 'pure' now it is sanctified by 'Art'?
Clausen's skips are beautiful - just look at the lines of his metallic 'template' - an abstraction of lines, a ghost-presence.
The context in which objects are placed intrigues Clausen and rifling through his portfolio of photos, it was amusing to see his metallic skip in various juxtapositions. I particularly liked the one where one of the college's collection of Grecian casts, a headless torso, was placed inside the skip - a humourous comment? Is the torso rubbish then?
A sense of humour helps. His Vending Machine on the wall (which I only later realized was a former condoms dispensing machine) dispenses...I will not tell you what. You make a wish and yes, you do receive something that symbolizes your wish. It's all in the perception, Clausen told us. 'It's all to do with the future, your hopes,' said my husband. 'Like condoms, they also are a symbol of hope- what sort of sex are you hoping for and what will you, in fact, have?'
A booklet of photographs of paintwork (on skips, I presume) in various stages of decay and rust is also on display. These are so beautiful, I wished he had displayed the photographs around the walls. Again the idea's not new. But does it matter? This is Clausen's own perception of beauty and he's certainly won me as a convert.
No comments:
Post a Comment