American artist Bill Viola brings “Tiny Deaths” to the Tate Modern to coincide with a permanent installation of his new work, “Martyrs (Earth, Air, Fire, Water)” residing within St Pauls Cathedral, which in itself is probably something to be proud of – regardless of any religious beliefs (or lack there-of), to have a piece of modern art within such a famous and historic place of worship is a pretty impressive accomplishment for the artist involved and will no doubt see a divided opinion in its placement.
However this here is about my recent experience of the sound and visual piece currently on display elsewhere within our capital city. It may not be new as such, given it was first produced in 1993, but its’ current home within the Tate Modern has provided “Tiny Deaths” with a new lease of life.
The interpretation of any art is down to the individual however with “Tiny Deaths” Violas concept is to reach out and “open up broad possibilities around the meaning and transience of existence”, it’s a dark and almost sinister piece playing with your senses.
As you enter it’s near impossible to gauge how many people you are sharing the experience with, for you are greeted with complete darkness and only the faintest of outlines of figurines on each of the three screens as disturbing groans fill the room, creating a sort of Blair Witch Project ambience before sudden bursts of light bring a glimpse of the bodies on display.
It’s at this point whereby my issue lies, not with the art itself, but the behaviour patterns of the general public…. Ok what one gets out of any artwork is different to that of another, however when individuals on more than one occasion start to create their own torch via the use of mobile phones it has to be brought into question.
The Tate Modern has never been one to constantly air on the side of health and safety, for there have been various installations over the years that have thrown the rulebook out the preverbal window but surely on this occasion if the venue (or more importantly the artist himself) wanted you to see what was happening they would have had lighting readily available?
As a member of the public you are of course entitled to carry about your business as much as the next person, but for me personally this particular action was no different to a crowd talking loudly over a musician playing acoustically – the performer isn’t playing quietly so the rest of the audience can hear you discuss what you had for dinner, neither has Bill Viola omitted lights from his work so that you can provide your own.
It’s not so much that anything was intentional and I’m sure many of you may disagree with my reasoning, but in doing so the mobile phone usage inadvertently showed a lack of self-awareness and respect not only to the artist but more directly those around them.
That said and done though, Bill Violas “Tiny Deaths” was an intriguing and compelling installation and one that certainly gave me more to think about than it necessarily intended!
http://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/display/bill-viola
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