Alix Pearlstein ( VCU Visiting Artist)

I attended Alix Pearlstein's lecture on Wednesday, which left me in a confused state about art and the exhibition of art. I would like to point out that I would have probably left her actual gallery exhibition feeling differently about the work and the presentation. However, in the given show space, the Student Commons Theater, it was difficult for me to experience the work how I believe it was meant to be experienced.
I feel as though I understood the point of the work because Pearlstein spoke about the individual pieces and her inspirations and reasoning. From her lecture I understood that the works were very theme-based and almost channeled age-old fables. (For example, Foresaken, was very much based on themes and fables about the abuse of power and the mutiny which ensues.) This specific video, I feel, was more straight-forward than the others.
Like I said, I understood the meanings of the videos, and I think they were very creatively portrayed. However, I didn't really understand exactly what the audience is meant to gain conceptually from the pieces. Pearlstein said herself that she would be very amused if someone in the audience was entertained by her work. This is a way of thinking about art that I had not really been exposed to previously. Art exclusively for the maker--should this change how it is presented to the audience, how it is exhibited or talked about? Should it be talked about? I would like to see more pieces of this specific genre to help myself answer these questions.

Blend (VCU Fine Arts Building)

I stopped by the Fine Arts Building's exhibition, Blend yesterday. There I found an interesting mix of media and artists, a few names I recognized, and many I didn't. The thing I found most interesting about the exhibition was the great mix of different art forms, concepts, emotions, etc displayed here. I'm more used to seeing a single artist's work up at one time in one place, so this was an interesting twist on my average art exposure and experience. At first, I found the mixed media overwhelming. I had a instinctive reflex to leave before entering the room fully because I wasn't sure where to look first. Then I realized that seeing the work set up all together like this made me stay longer than I may have in a single artist's exhibition. I found myself drawn to each piece individually, instead of absorbing a group of works all together. What really helped this was the numbering of the works, which brought the viewer through the room in an organized and chronological way. I think without this, I would have been to overwhelmed to stay long enough to study each piece.
The part of the show which made the greatest impression on me was the mix of intent and emotion. Each artist had something different to say and a different way to say it, which fascinated me greatly. Some pieces seemed like explorations in line, shape and form, like the Hairnet Installation, by Akiko Jackson. Another was quite politically charged--Project Hope, by Keith Mendak. Each artists agenda was different, but the obvious personality and emotions behind most of them truly moved me.
Lastly, I think the show space was very important in linking the show with its contents. It took place in the VCU Fine Arts Building, an atmosphere charged with fresh, artistic minds. Seeing so many different mediums, some more obscure than others, in such an atmosphere made a lot of sense to me, as a viewer.