Island living

I've been installing some video art for the past week on Governors Island. My work was selected by 4heads for the the Governors Island Art Fair. After a slightly rocky start where I was offered a room with no outlets that people could not enter, we worked something out. I had initially applied with 4 pieces, and when accepted said my only requirements were as many outlets as I could get. As a video artist, they come in quite handy. The plan was to install 6 pieces into a room as a cohesive installation.


In college we had a theater called the Cellar. Because it was a cellar. The beauty of naming its entrance aside, the place was a logistical nightmare. 8 ft (at best) ceilings meant the lights were so low, no one over 6ft could effectively be on stage. There were 4 entrances to the space. One "entrance" led to the prop room from which there was no exit, so anyone exiting there had to remain in storage for the rest of the play. The other three could only be accessed by leaving the building and running outside to another door. Not fun in a Maine winter. The floor, walls and ceiling were all cement and acoustically atrocious, not to mention hell for any dancing or stage combat. It was as if someone dropped a giant cinder block into the foundation of the theater, and we were left to perform in the cavity it formed.

It was a wonderful space. We did dozens of shows there in my four years. We did shows in the round, proscenium, thrust, alley you name it. The space forced us into heights of creativity by its very intractability. I spent the first day at Governors Island trying to get a different space, but ended up compromising by taking a few rooms with no outlets and running power up from the floor below. In fact, they gave me a whole section of the attic including the hallway, so people can view the different pieces from different doorways. I spent the next day figuring out exactly how it would all work, and ended up rearranging just about everything. The end result is a much better exhibit, I think, that incorporates the space in a way that would be impossible using a neutral room.
All in all, I am grateful for the restrictions that force creativity, even if the initial reaction is to rail against any imperfection. While I would like to get everything I want to realize my vision (obviously) and will try to create the opportunities that allow it, I know I will also look for the boundaries to push against. Knowing that those concrete walls are never as solid as they first appear.

-Brent