Quick – today is the last day of another great exhibition at the Ben Brown Fine Arts Gallery in the Pedder Building.
It is the second exhibition that I’ve visited there (after Tseng Kwong Chi at the end of 2014) and again, I am really fascinated by it.
The exhibition called ‘Album’ by Vik Muniz combines photographs and postcards in big collages – and it is not just a scrapbook-kind of approach, but in fact all the small bits and pieces form a new image. For instance, the skyline of Shanghai or Hong Kong, an image of two giraffes or a lady holding a cat.
It is clever – at first glance you notice the big overall picture, but then once you stand closer, you can see all the details. There are enlarged postcards, stamps, handwritten notes, pictures, newspaper cut-outs and headlines, all carefully assembled.
I had come across Vik Muniz before, but in a completely different context: In 2010, Vik Muniz was featured in the documentary film Waste Land, directed by Lucy Walker, which featured Muniz’s work on one of the world’s largest garbage dumps, Jardim Gramacho, on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro. The film was nominated to the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at the 83rd Academy Awards – and I remember watching it on a long plane flight and being mesmerised by it.
I had no idea that he created such large pieces of artwork in mixed media – and I’m glad that I saw it. It’s just a shame that the exhibition closes today, so quickly: visit Central and have a look!
bluebalu 