Navigating the Tonal Divide of Exhibition and Gallery Space:
A Study of the Common Experience Gallery Show Consequence
Celeste Gaudin
The intersection between art and climate is a hot debate in our current social climate. Questions of the environmental impact art can leave behind are rampant on social media. Discussions of the use of plastic within art materials such as paint and resin are being called unsustainable and non-ecofriendly. With the counterargument posing the idea that art is supposed to last, it is by definition a non environmental form of communication. Yet, a lot of art over the past 40 years has been focused on discussions of environmental awareness. Exploration into environmental art, ephemeral art and performance art leading the charge of this growing focus. With climate change becoming an ever more pressing issue, artists are leaning into themes of environmental systems as inspiration and to bring awareness.
The exhibition Consequence is focused on these environmental issues. On display in the Common Experience Gallery, in the Lampasas building on Texas State University Campus. Consequence is an exhibition exploring the intersection of art and environmental systems. The gallery is held in connection with the yearly common experience theme, with this year’s theme being Systems Thinking. Before being able to discuss the exhibition in depth I feel that it is prudent to discuss the space that it is being held in first.
The Common Experience Gallery is a small space hidden on the highest point of campus, in one of the oldest buildings on campus, Lampasas. Lampasas holds the Honors College of Texas State, the Common Experience Gallery, and classrooms within its dingy interior. The gallery itself is not what one would expect from a typical art gallery. No sweeping white walls or large empty spaces that the galleries in JCM allocate for; JCM is the abbreviation for the Joann Cole Mitte building that contains the School of Art and Design. Instead, the Common Experience Gallery is dimly lit, with brown and beige tones encompassing the gallery. With its walls that have seen better days and slightly yellow color the gallery feels like a room built without much thought. Not only does the gallery space function as an art gallery but it is also one of the designated study spaces for students. One of the perks for students in this space is the free coffee service that is offered all day. Since Lampasas is one of the buildings used for the Honors College the gallery space is also used as an event space. With the Live in Lampasas events being hosted directly in the gallery. The result of all these functions leaves the gallery cluttered, filled with tables, chairs, couches and coffee tables. Due to all the furniture that is in the gallery, walking along the perimeter to view the art is tricky at best. Due to furniture configurations within the gallery a typical viewing experience is impossible, with the amount of space between the artwork and the viewer being fixed at a point much farther away than the convention. Taking into account that no matter the time of viewing there are students focused upon their own work and are often located right in front of various artworks, the viewing experience for the exhibition is quite difficult. There is no singular or cohesive use of the space, and it shows.
This is not to be disparaging towards the gallery, or its curator. Rather the opposite, this complex issue of the physical gallery space is not something that would typically need to be accounted for in most art galleries. These limitations imposed upon by the gallery itself drive a need to be flexible and creative in the curation of the exhibitions being held within the space. That being said the exhibition is not flawless, and issues from the physical space do transpire. The most pressing of which is the ability to view the artwork, but odd lighting in the space also contributes to an odd disconnect in the viewing experience. Along with the diverging tones of the exhibition and gallery itself.
To the exhibition itself, Consequence, is a two-artist show of Bethany Johnson and Dameon Lester, with both artists creating abstract works. The show opened on the 28th of February and will close on August 8th of this year. The show focuses on the intersection of climate systems and art. The artists use various natural systems to influence the creation of their art. Johnson’s work is composed of collages to try and capture and understand natural phenomena. Lester’s work focuses on the issues of glacier systems. In both two-dimensional and sculptural work Lester reflects upon the broken system that glaciers have become.
When you walk into the gallery you are met with a dimly lit room that first appears to be a study space for the students. It is when you look at the walls that you discover the art gallery hidden within it. The walls are lined with simply framed two-dimensional works. These are in various mediums of collages and ink on paper. The standout part of the show are the sculptures that appear to be emerging from the wall on the far side of the gallery from the door. The work is Lester’s and the all-white color of the work makes them almost easy to glance over upon first inspection. What makes the work stand out among the rest is not only that it is the only sculpture in the room, but the way in which light interacts with the art. The wall sculptures are from a series with the gallery displaying Face 2, Face 5, Face 6, Face 7, Face 8, Face 10 and Face 12. The sculptures protrude from the wall from a smaller area than the surface that is closest to the viewer. This creates a shadow on the wall from the spotlights. Depending on the angle of the light to the work the shadow depths vary. The variation becomes a part of the work and helps to create more visual interest on the wall. These protruding sculptures are based on a real glacier that Lester observed. The different shapes of the sculptures are the different angles that the glacier was observed. This creates a fictional glacier that has been fractured and mounted on the wall in the name of art. With an understanding of the source of inspiration behind the work, the sculptures emanate a deeply melancholic tone. The faux glaciers are akin to a melting glacier breaking apart. There is a sense of loss that occurs throughout Lester’s work in the exhibition. His series of ink on paper studies are based on the same glacier. With the different angles of the glacier rendered in simple geometric form on a large scale. The polygonal shapes are spread throughout the exhibition lending the gallery a form of framing.
On the wall to the left of the entrance forms a line of Bethany Johnson’s work. Collages from Johnson’s series The Poem That Took The Place Of A Mountain and We Live On A Planet are neatly lined up at eye height. The collages offer the only color within the exhibition, with the sparing use of green and blue being the only hint of color in the otherwise black and white exhibition. Johnson’s work incorporates images of mountains, rocks, trees, clouds, sound waves and grid lines. This blending of natural elements and mathematical patterns creates a dichotomy within her work. Johnson blends natural elements with a very science-based focus into her art. Johnson’s work focuses on how humans try to parse and understand nature. Her art is at the intersection of observing and understanding the natural world. There is a rigid quality to her work and the display in the gallery. Johnson’s collages can be broken down into a series of horizontal bands. Paralleling her linear work, the exhibition displays her series in a horizontal line across one wall. On the walls of the gallery there is a brown band of molding that runs across the entire room at roughly hip height. While in most cases this is another limitation from the space, the band adds a nice parallel to Johnson’s work. Her work is beautiful if not understated. Taking a closer look at one of the works allows for us to understand what tone Johnson’s work invokes. We Live on a Planet No. 18 can be divided into three sections. On the top the words THE SEA are on a white background, below is an image of cliffs, water and a beach, underneath it all is a pattern in red and blue that one can assume is a scientific representation of the subject. Johnson gives three ways in which humans understand a concept, with language, image, and math. Her work is very analytical and creates an almost studious response in the viewer.
Johnson’s and Lester’s work play off very well with one another. Lester works on a larger scale, with clean geometric shapes and black and white colors. In contrast Johnson’s smaller works, with color and more overall composition, have room to breathe in the exhibition. With this being a two artist show it is important that the art complements and works together. For Consequence this is a rousing success. Neither artist dominates; rather Johnson’s work introduces the concepts of the show and Lester’s work concludes the show and sets the leaving tone.
Consequence is a successful show in terms of concept and execution. The message of the show is clear, and the work chosen displays it with grace. However, it feels like an odd choice of concept for the physical gallery space. The exhibition feels like it would be more successful in a traditional gallery space. With a high concept and very cleanly executed work makes the casual mood of the gallery space feel at odds with the exhibition living inside of it. This leads to an odd discrepancy between the exhibition and physical gallery, something that I have never encountered in quite the same way as the Common Experience Gallery. The tonal difference makes the exhibition harder to navigate and the concept seems a bit heavy for the tone of the space.
Now the hard part, would I recommend you visit the exhibition? Sadly, the answer is more complicated than I would like. I wish I could give this a resounding yes, however, that would not be truthful. If you are a student, I think you should absolutely go. It is free on campus, and they hold events throughout the semester. I will always advocate for seeing as much art as possible and a free gallery on the campus you attend is a ripe opportunity. Now if you’re not a student, I wouldn’t suggest it. If you happen to be on campus with free time, then yes check it out. However, for the general public this isn’t a realistic scenario, and I can’t in good confidence recommend going out of ones way to see the show.