With Greenlights 2021, potentially-graduating artists at the Minerva Art Academy are changing how we think of art exhibitions
By Thomas Ansell
The Minerva Art Academy’s show to determine if its artists graduate for 2021, called Greenlights, has just opened online to showcase 55 artists across a number of styles and mediums. Minerva’s shows of this kind are keenly anticipated, and so there was widespread disappointment when the Coronavirus shutdown also stopped any physical exhibition taking place.
However, a typically creative solution has been devised: an online show with 360 degree walk-around, live events and talks, a series of workshops; and artistic performances. 55 pieces are being exhibited, whilst a full programme is available on the Facebook page of the exhibition.
Of the 55 artists on show, we spoke to three that exhibit a range of styles and mediums: Rachel Doherty, Ana, and Bad Artist.
Doherty is showing a series of autobiographical paintings called ‘Series Eight’, and an innovative take on the Dubliners’ song ‘7 Drunken Nights’, reimagined as a political poem. Whilst Doherty’s style is easy to recognise, as she says, “I will not limit myself to one medium”.
Ana explores the function of language in the context of feeling dislocated, with historical influences and commentary on the India of today rolled in. Her work ‘Words from Ears’ bridges the gap between the physical and digital in the form of a journal whilst ‘Untitled’ is a richly conceptual look at the duality of national feeling. “The two aspects of presenting that we had to adapt to; the physical and the online, was an interesting topic to tackle in our post modern online world but it was a struggle, to say the least. They are two very different environments”, says Ana.
Meanwhile, Bad Artist considers the significance of context by removing us from it: her white cube being re-imagined as a tongue-in-cheek and absurdist DIY instructional manual on how to create the cube and so remove our context.
Having a show online might be thought of as a limitation, but as Bad Artist says, “being part of the process of creating an exhibition that paints the landscape of art culture in such a creative manner has been incredibly stimulating. It is disappointing to see the currents circumstances prevent us from hosting the exhibition as we intended, but I believe the Green Lights 2021 have reimagined what Art Academy exhibitions are known to be.”
Greenlights is available to view online until February 6
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