>>REVIEW
STILL
Robyn Moody
Runs until November 18
The New Gallery
A visit with an arts administrator friend to a sushi restaurant not far from The New Gallery raises all kinds of ethical questions, but mostly it reinforces my fixation for the day: Robyn Moody’s Still, an artwork that’s a life-support system for one contented family of goldfish.
Still uses technology to reproduce the water cycle that occurs naturally on our planet. You remember those diagrams in your Grade 8 science textbook of lakes evaporating, clouds forming, that sort of thing? Moody has created an excellent working model outlining how that system operates. Think: educational op! Not to mention, it’s been elegantly crafted from materials that might not usually be considered lovely or beautiful, including plastic, wire and tape.
The machine refines and purifies the water in each identical aquarium in a rather theatrical way. The water certainly looks clean. The goldfish look very happy about this, and they make great starlets.
Six tanks are arranged around a cylindrical central pillar that looks a bit like a pinball bumper. Coming out of this glowing form are arrays of cords, and water buckets with more tubes and other extraction devices that seem dauntingly complex considering how straightforward those science textbook drawings always are.
The thing has a dim laboratory feel and recalls a set piece out of 2001. Blinking lights give read-outs in a language that we could guess mean "on," "off" and "loading," but could signify all kinds of other subtleties. Walking in, the sounds of mechanical clicks and on/off stutters are washed over by the hiss of steaming kettles. The air is thick and humid. Pumps, cords and plugs are neatly arranged on The New Gallery’s hardwood floors, and selective and dramatic lighting pinpoints the working bits of Moody’s machine. Small squares of duct tape make cameos, acting as functional solutions that might also be seen as pure esthetics. A bucket in the corner could either be a silent player in the goldfish drama, or an improvised solution to a leaky roof.
Kay Burns, quoted in Moody’s artist’s statement, observes that water is "a resource surrounded by controversy." Moody notes that the work has become a "sociopolitical piece" that he further describes as a "giant iron lung" for six darling goldfish. You might feel a bit of empathy for the tiny creatures that Still supervises – but it’s crucial to keep in mind that the piece is just as much about our own survival as a species. The availability of clean drinking water has become of great concern for the well-being of all animals, including us, yet humans seem to have a fantastic trust in the ability of either their own ingenuity or the serendipitous outcomes of their technological gadgets to rescue them from disaster. It is one of our least charming traits.
Children will likely be initially timid but eventually delighted by Still – just keep an eye on their grabby hands. Many items in the show will offer temptation for pulling, snagging and general wrecking, but one small tug might take the life of a tender goldfish! |
Copyright ©2005 FFWD. All rights reserved.