Went to see an exhibition that shall remain nameless at a gallery that shall remain unnamed yesterday and I left very confused.It was not a declared retrospective, but it looked more like a pawn shop.
All sorts, new valueless stuff, old overpriced "take it or leave it" uninteresting gigantic nonsense celebrating some weird looking old "has been" (perhaps still is).
Amongst the cacophony of unfinished, unresolved trials and tribulations, the work of Julie Corfe really stands out. Profound and simple.
But the real motive of my post is to talk about signing and dating one's work.
Until now, I believed that dating your work on the front was a very good idea, but after seeing this show I begin to believe that this is a very bad thing, if one curator decides to feature your work in a show like this.
There are plenty of reasons why works don't sell, but having your work made six years ago in an exhibition that pretends to be fresh is most likely very damaging to any one's career.
I've seen some pieces that keep popping up at various events - not bad, but not good either. More like studies, you know, the school studies type. Aimed at improving one's technique, not creativity.
To end, I was very unimpressed, although the show has attracted quite a crowd. The sad thing is that the crowd was the one that always gathers together, just to be seen (and have a free drink?). I will check later if any work has sold. I'll be very pleasantly surprised.
