Martin Creed is completely invading the Centro Botìn in Santander with a rainbow of media, all of them in oder to promote the truly meaning of frienship. Titled “AMIGOS” and curated by Benjamin Weil (artistic director of Centro Botín), this site-specific show can be visited inside the beautiful building designed by the architect Renzo Piano, from April 6 until June 9, 2019. Always in Spain! Don't miss our latest article about ARCOmadrid 2019...
The project born at the end of a workshop that Creed directed from March 25 to April 5 at the Fundación Botín. During the course of this workshop the British artist composed a new musical piece, which subsequently has be performed live in the exhibition space, among a series of wall paintings; and the sound work has be played at all times during the opening hours of the museum and during the entire course of the exhibition. Every year Santander is hosting Artesantander Art Fair, read more about this important Contemporary Art Fair and start to plan your favourite event for this 2019: "The 2019 Unmissable Exhibitions"!
This pluridisciplinary and multi-dimensional project takes place in the second floor galleries and second-floor lobby where all the staff members are wearing costumes altered by the artist himself. And just because space it's never enough the artistic intervention goes on inside the elevator, as well as in the trees that surround the building. As often in his work, Creed invites the visitors to reconsider their environment, this time drawing their attention on gallery attendants, as well as on architectural elements one would usually tend to overlook. In doing so, he fosters a more acute and attentive look at the most menial aspects of the environment; a sense of awareness of the space and of the time spent in it. In that sense, he immerses the visitors in a different spatiotemporal dimension. There are others artists as Creed that love to work on site specific museum projects, and among these Tomás Saraceno with his solo show "On Air" at Palais de Tokyo warrants further analysis...Read more!
Indeed, Martin Creed elaborates his projects taking into consideration the context and the space each will occupy. He composes his interventions with a number of elements, ranging from paintings and drawings to sculpture, sounds, moving image and live performance. In this instance, the choice of deploying a large number of Wall Paintings beyond the boundaries of the galleries transforms the perception of the space. The ongoing and roaming music performance creates a sense of pace, while the museum staff, akin to the performers, bears costumes as if to signify they are an integral part of the project. From the large bay windows of the museum, one observes the view, although altered by yet another element in the project.
Creed once stated that he likes “to work without deciding in advance what I’m going to do. I find out as I go along whether it takes me to music, to painting or to something else. Each piece is an attempt at something, a little experiment. It’s a show of many experiments.” The monumentality of the Wall Paintings contrasts with the relative bareness of the space, which calls for a different relationship to the exhibition, punctuated at each end by the monumental bay windows overlooking the Bay of Santander on one end and the City on the other. One’s visit is paced by the roaming musicians playing the quatuor imagined by the artist. The perception of time seems to shift, as one becomes more acutely aware with all senses awakened.
Stretching from the surrounding Pereda gardens all the way into the Second-floor galleries, the project that Creed unfolds at Centro Botín occupies not only spaces usually dedicated to the exhibition of artworks, but also intermediary spaces where one rarely would stop or pay attention to. The roving musicians appear and disappear, in a choreography that may appear erratic, when it is in fact all carefully set by the artist. One could follow them or decide to await their return, wander around and enjoy the bright colors of monumental paintings that cover every single inch of white wall of the exhibition building’s second floor. Creed likes to use the word “show” to describe his work, as this refers not only to traditional exhibitions, but also to concerts or time-based performances. As he stated on previous occasions, “If I were forced to use a term for my work, I would call it expressionism because I believe that all artists express themselves in the things they do. The problem I have with Conceptual Art is that I don’t believe that it is possible to separate ideas from feelings.” If you want to discover more: www.centrobotin.org
*Cover images: Show de Martin Creed: AMIGOS en el Centro Botín. © Fundación Botín-Centro Botín. Arquitecto: Renzo Piano, Santander 2018. Imagen: Belén de Benito.