ICA

ICA

This piece was eerily human. The fabric's form seemed anthropomorphic, but in a more abstract and vague sense than most depictions of humans in art. This, combined with the color and translucence of the material gave the figure a ghost-like aura. I found the piece to be somewhat mysterious, and made me think of the recent holiday of Halloween.

I thought this piece was by far the most  ridiculous, pathetic, and absurd work of "art" we have seen all year. The piece added absolutely nothing to the exhibit. Laughable in its appearance and utility, these two strings were so easy to miss that I'm almost upset that I noticed them at all. Fittingly, the strings were untitled. I think that the scorn many people hold for modern art is due to pieces like this. While good modern art can be imaginative, creative, and meaningful, bad pieces like these fail to capitalize on their simplicity or uniqueness; they are boring at best.

This piece was my favorite of the exhibit. The spiderweb-like intertwined strings were not only interesting to look at, but they reminded me of both The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter. Each of these series feature memorable, extremely large spiders. Seeing this piece reminded me of these novels and films that were so integral to my childhood, making them seem both mysterious and nostalgic. This combination of feelings made me really appreciate this piece. I also appreciated the intricacy of the design; the artist must have been meticulous in designing the exhibit because the webs were interwoven in an extremely complex network. It certainly paid off-- this was an incredible piece.

This separate-room light display was fairly interesting. Its use of darkness in amid brightly-lit surroundings  reminded me of the Shinique Smith Dark Matter piece at the MFA. However, since the images in the piece were  mobile, the piece was still unique. The images comprised an eclectic and seemingly random assortment of everyday objects, but the piece still seemed to maintain simplicity and order. The photograph included features Brent and Anush contemplating the lightness and darkness in their own lives.

This piece seemed to be an embodiment of insanity. Although the piece depicts a face, the disordered, chaotic, and intertwined fabrics give it a sense of madness. I thought the piece was one of the best because it incorporated many different textures of fabrics. I think that its use of different materials-- different fibers-- fit the exhibit's theme better than any other piece.

I found this installment to be another disappointment. I fail to see the originality or profundity in the piece. Moreover, its use of fabric was almost unnecessary; it was difficult to see the texture of the string except from very close to the work, which seemed to detract from the exhibit's central focus.

This work did an excellent job of utilizing its three-dimensional form. First of all, the appearance of the work changed at different angles. Gaps allowed light to pass through certain areas, making the view from each angle slightly different. Second, the visibility of inner layers portrayed the depth and dimension of this work more than any of its counterparts. The piece seemed to be extremely deep, and because the innermost layers were just barely visible, the viewer had to fill in the gaps using his or her mind. Finally, the piece reminded me of the Ewok trap from Star Wars Episode VI, which, though probably not the intended purpose, I found to be very entertaining.

This was one of the better pieces as the exhibit. I personally liked the distorted shape and color combination utilized in the work. I thought the piece showed movement and strain through its twisted shape. It was hard to label exactly what the piece was representing-- a person, an animal, DNA, some other helix, or any one of countless other possibilities. This allowed for various interpretation, which is a sign of a meaningful work of art. The piece attracted attention with its unique appearance and unclear message and symbolism.