by Natalie Avondet
Not realizing the cut-off time for entering the "Rachel Whiteread" exhibit at the Saint Louis Art Museum was a full hour earlier than the close of the Museum, my pace is hurried if not an all out run. The sound of my heels and their echo are almost indecipherable. A taptaptaptaptap. More like a typewriter than an echo.
With only a few minutes to spare, I reach the entrance. Hand over my ticket. Flash a smile. Check to make sure I didn’t break heel…not an unusual occurrence for me. I am in. A glance here. A glance there. I take note of what looks like a door, several “boxes” arranged in a grid on the floor, and a few hot water bottles on a shelf.
Not knowing much about the exhibiting artist, Rachel Whiteread, I decide to read the pamphlet. She’s British. Good to know. She was the first woman to win the Turner Prize for sculpture in 1993. Interesting. Known for her solid casts of negative spaces, she is one of the world’s leading contemporary sculptors. Very interesting.
I check out the hot water bottles. The “boxes.” The door. I hear the echos of the other patrons’ whispers. Should I whisper, too? Examining the displays a little closer, I realize the hot water bottles are casts of the interior of each vessel. Each “box” is a mold of the underside of a chair. The door is simply an impression of its exterior. Now, the negative space is clear.
Whiteread is casting the blank space inside the hot water bottle, around the chair, on the exterior of the door to create her work. Essentially, she is recreating the mold that was or could have been used to create the object. She is taking the subject back to its origin and preserving the memory of its form and every memory it holds from its creation to its time of casting.
In Whiteread’s own words, “In a way. It’s almost like taking photographs or making prints of the space. If those parts of the building don’t exit later, I’ll still have, as you say, the archive of the place.’’ A blueprint, if you will. As stated, her work transcends the blueprint. She has also “found a way to make memories solid.” For it is in that space, the memory takes place.
Though each cast of each door can be used to re-create a door, each cast holds the memory of a knock; its opening to a first date or a soldier returning home from war. Each cast of each hot water bottle holds the memory of a home remedy. A mother’s touch. Comfort.
Her works range in size, material and color. From a tiny toilet paper roll to a full sale Victorian house which earned her the aforementioned Turner Prize; from resin to concrete; from translucent to pink… she explores similarities and differences.
Though the door casts are similar, each has its own knicks and scrapes from years of knocks, or as Whiteread has more eloquently stated, “the residue of years and years of use.” And though we may not have ever knocked on that particular door, we all share a memory of knocking on some door, somewhere, some time; and therein, lies the experience, similar yet different.
It’s 5:00 p.m. The exhibit is closing. I’m hungry anyway. As I leave, I return to the door through which I entered. I am walking more slowly now. There is no hurry. The echo of my stride is a much more familiar echo. Tap….tappptappptappp. Tap…tappptappptappp. Tap…tappptappptappp. Similar yet different than an hour before. Just one of the memories the space between these walls hold. Hmmm. I wonder if my barefeet would produce an echo?
If you had a chance to see the exhibit, what was your take away? Comments welcome.
_____________________________________
"Rachel Whiteread" is on display at Saint Louis Art Museum March 17 through June 9, 2019. Museum hours are Tuesday-Sunday 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Friday, 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Last ticket entry of day is one hour prior to Museum closing. Saint Louis Art Museum is located at One Fine Arts Drive in Forest Park, St. Louis, MO 63110. 314/721-0072. Admission to the Museum is free every day. Admission to main exhibitions is free on Friday and free to SLAM members, otherwise tickets are required. Tickets for this exhibit are: $6 (children 5 & under), $8 (seniors & students), $12 (adults).
_____________________________________
Natalie Avondet is a St. Louis-based artist. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Journalism/Advertising with a Minor in Psychology from University of Missouri's School of Journalism. Natalie's early career was in commercial advertising in the Midwest and Los Angeles. Art is a lifelong passion and she began seriously painting and exhibiting in galleries while in Los Angeles. Determined to pursue her artistic career, she returned to the Midwest and since then has exhibited in Kansas City, Los Angeles and Saint Louis. Her work is represented locally by Grafica Fine Art Gallery. You can reach out to her and comment on this post through her blog.
Not realizing the cut-off time for entering the "Rachel Whiteread" exhibit at the Saint Louis Art Museum was a full hour earlier than the close of the Museum, my pace is hurried if not an all out run. The sound of my heels and their echo are almost indecipherable. A taptaptaptaptap. More like a typewriter than an echo.
With only a few minutes to spare, I reach the entrance. Hand over my ticket. Flash a smile. Check to make sure I didn’t break heel…not an unusual occurrence for me. I am in. A glance here. A glance there. I take note of what looks like a door, several “boxes” arranged in a grid on the floor, and a few hot water bottles on a shelf.
Not knowing much about the exhibiting artist, Rachel Whiteread, I decide to read the pamphlet. She’s British. Good to know. She was the first woman to win the Turner Prize for sculpture in 1993. Interesting. Known for her solid casts of negative spaces, she is one of the world’s leading contemporary sculptors. Very interesting.
 |
| Installation view of the exhibition "Rachel Whiteread" on view at the Saint Louis Art Museum from March 17 to June 9, 2019. © Rachel Whiteread |
I check out the hot water bottles. The “boxes.” The door. I hear the echos of the other patrons’ whispers. Should I whisper, too? Examining the displays a little closer, I realize the hot water bottles are casts of the interior of each vessel. Each “box” is a mold of the underside of a chair. The door is simply an impression of its exterior. Now, the negative space is clear.
Whiteread is casting the blank space inside the hot water bottle, around the chair, on the exterior of the door to create her work. Essentially, she is recreating the mold that was or could have been used to create the object. She is taking the subject back to its origin and preserving the memory of its form and every memory it holds from its creation to its time of casting.
In Whiteread’s own words, “In a way. It’s almost like taking photographs or making prints of the space. If those parts of the building don’t exit later, I’ll still have, as you say, the archive of the place.’’ A blueprint, if you will. As stated, her work transcends the blueprint. She has also “found a way to make memories solid.” For it is in that space, the memory takes place.
Though each cast of each door can be used to re-create a door, each cast holds the memory of a knock; its opening to a first date or a soldier returning home from war. Each cast of each hot water bottle holds the memory of a home remedy. A mother’s touch. Comfort.
Her works range in size, material and color. From a tiny toilet paper roll to a full sale Victorian house which earned her the aforementioned Turner Prize; from resin to concrete; from translucent to pink… she explores similarities and differences.
Though the door casts are similar, each has its own knicks and scrapes from years of knocks, or as Whiteread has more eloquently stated, “the residue of years and years of use.” And though we may not have ever knocked on that particular door, we all share a memory of knocking on some door, somewhere, some time; and therein, lies the experience, similar yet different.
It’s 5:00 p.m. The exhibit is closing. I’m hungry anyway. As I leave, I return to the door through which I entered. I am walking more slowly now. There is no hurry. The echo of my stride is a much more familiar echo. Tap….tappptappptappp. Tap…tappptappptappp. Tap…tappptappptappp. Similar yet different than an hour before. Just one of the memories the space between these walls hold. Hmmm. I wonder if my barefeet would produce an echo?
If you had a chance to see the exhibit, what was your take away? Comments welcome.
_____________________________________
"Rachel Whiteread" is on display at Saint Louis Art Museum March 17 through June 9, 2019. Museum hours are Tuesday-Sunday 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Friday, 10 a.m.-9 p.m. Last ticket entry of day is one hour prior to Museum closing. Saint Louis Art Museum is located at One Fine Arts Drive in Forest Park, St. Louis, MO 63110. 314/721-0072. Admission to the Museum is free every day. Admission to main exhibitions is free on Friday and free to SLAM members, otherwise tickets are required. Tickets for this exhibit are: $6 (children 5 & under), $8 (seniors & students), $12 (adults).
_____________________________________
Natalie Avondet is a St. Louis-based artist. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Journalism/Advertising with a Minor in Psychology from University of Missouri's School of Journalism. Natalie's early career was in commercial advertising in the Midwest and Los Angeles. Art is a lifelong passion and she began seriously painting and exhibiting in galleries while in Los Angeles. Determined to pursue her artistic career, she returned to the Midwest and since then has exhibited in Kansas City, Los Angeles and Saint Louis. Her work is represented locally by Grafica Fine Art Gallery. You can reach out to her and comment on this post through her blog.
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