I made two videos a couple of months back in an attempt to explain how to right a few of my Recycled Object works. I photograph every work that I make, taking care to show what I hope is an ideal view of the piece. When doing this I want to accurately capture the piece, yes, but also to show it in the best light. Unfortunately the best view is not necessarily what will turn up in the box at the gallery, especially should the pieces happen to shift around in transit.
Since I can’t guarantee what any work will look like once it hits the gallery doorstep, I wanted to preempt any queries about the works while I still had them with me. Thus these videos are designed to show how to prepare the works for installation at a gallery. While I don’t think that they’re overly complex little beasties, they do have a tendency to look wonky (especially some of the earlier pieces where I was still getting used to how the metal and cable parts of the works interacted) if the many planes aren’t lined up when they are displayed.
The easiest way to describe what I do to correct the works was through a visual medium, thus the videos. I can’t claim that these instructions are particularly interesting, and as video works they are definitely not technically interesting (I was using my stills camera to make them so they are firmly fixed focus) but they do show the movement of the works. So if you’ve never been able to play with one of these pieces and see how it reacts, these might be interesting to watch?
Red Radial Pattern (Pin) – Righting the layers from Melissa Cameron on Vimeo.