As Rachel discussed in the blog last week, the Pulitzer hosted a Minimalism Symposium this past weekend. The program was a great success, with approximately 15 scholars, artists, and writers flying in from across the country to participate. I had the opportunity to listen to the walk-through of both the Pulitzer and SLAM’s exhibitions, and to hear the ensuing discussions that took place among the participants.

One of the issues that arose was the physical presentation of Minimalist works in the gallery spaces, and the unique challenges that come with the territory. Minimalist art is by definition simplified to essential elements of content and form — artists try to present their work without any distractions, including those of composition, theme, etc. Thus, curators must carefully take into account small details in the galleries (architectural and otherwise) that may interfere with how a viewer perceives a work of Minimal art.

For example, in this picture of the Symposium walk-through, you can see extraneous (but NECESSARY) elements of the architecture that could impact a visitor’s experience of the Gober sinks: floor grates, a fire alarm announcer, an exit sign, and a square plaque on the wall that is used to monitor gallery temperature.

In this image, you can see how the lines in the concrete floor pavers could affect the view of Roni Horn’s Gold Mats Paired (for Ross and Felix).

Similar challenges were noted with installing SLAM’s galleries, including working around baseboards, air vents, and ceiling beams.

This is just one example of all that curators must take into account when planning and installing a show — and it was not something I had thought about until our own Minimalism exhibition came about.

This blog will occasionally feature posts called, “A Day in the Life of…”. Elise, the Pulitzer’s Assistant Registrar, writes today about the installation of a work of art:

How many museum officials does it take to install a Roni Horn gold piece? In our case, it took seven: a registrar, a chairman of the board, a director, two art handlers, a courier from the lending institution, and a photographer/assistant registrar (me). Actually the process was just so interesting that a crowd seemed to gather at installation time.

The work is comprised of two sheets of pure gold, each of which has the qualities of a thick piece of foil.

The first sheet was placed on the ground (on top of a protective sheet of Mylar) and was smoothed as flat as possible. The second sheet, which has the same dimensions, was placed on top of the first.

The courier then lightly grasped one corner of the top sheet and, pulling upward, created the undulations in the gold. This process was repeated at each corner–all the while the bottom sheet remains flat on the ground. It is an inexact process, and a slightly different composition is created each time Gold Mats, Paired (For Ross and Felix) is installed.

The work is an interesting piece to view on the Mezzanine level where there is lots of natural light, and where the adjacent bamboo garden and watercourt can be seen. Although visitors can walk around the piece, PLEASE BE SURE TO KEEP A SAFE DISTANCE AT ALL TIMES. I wouldn’t be a registrar if I didn’t put that in all capital letters!