The London Tate Modern Art Museum

Recently I visited the The London Tate Modern Art Museum to find inspirational artist for my theme. I had the opportunity to see a variety of various artist works from different media, forms and sizes. Some had better impressions than others. Here are photographs of some of the work I viewed. 

(Above Nicholas Hlobo "Lingcamango" 2010, ribbon and rubber on paper, Tate Modern Art Museum)

Nicholas Hlobo "Macaleni Iintozomlambo" 2010, Ribbon and tea on paper, Tate Modern Art Museum)

I found these two pieces of work interesting as I like the idea of using unusual combinations of media, such as tea and ribbon to create something vibrant and abstract. What caught my eye the most was the use of warm and bold colours on a white surface as it accentuates the finer details of the artwork, and does not make the whole piece look noisy in detail.

(Above Rachel Harrison "XLT Footbed" 2013,Wood, polystyrene, cardboard, cement, acrylic paint, shoe and metal stanchions, Tate Modern Art Museum)

This piece caught my attention mainly because of the colours it contains they appear soft pastel like but in the same time are vibrant and intense, yet not overwhelming.

(Above Roger Hiorns, Untitled, 2006, Engine, steel and copper sulphate, Tate Modern Art Museum) The main interest about this sculpture was the fact that it is something i have never seen before or could imagine, its interesting how an object such as old metals and an engine can be reused and created into something that is shiny, bold and colourful and for some reason it remind me of a human heart due to its shape and positioning. Its also a great example for my theme inspiration of form before function, as something that was once a key part of a vehicle is now a key part of an art piece. 

(Above Sergio de Camargo "Large Split Relief No.34/4/74" 1964-1965, Polyvinyl acetate paint on lime wood on plywood support, Tate Modern Art Museum)

This art piece grabs attention due to its unusual use of texture and the 3D effect that is created, they key part of this art piece is it being minimalist, as it would seem like adding colours would only distract a viewer from observing the main focus point which is the wood details. Its interesting to see art pieces which do not rely on colours to express their characteristics.

Above on the left Louise Bourgeois "Are You In Orbit? (#1) " 2007, etching on paper, on the right  Louise Bourgeois "Are You In Orbit? (#2) " 2007, etching on paper, Tate Modern Art Museum)

These two large drawings caught my eye as they show mark making and experimentation with tones and contrasts on a larger scale which looks more effective as the lines and shapes are highlighted better.

(Above Louise Bourgeois "What is the Shape of this Problem?", 1999, letterpress on paper, Tate Modern Art Museum)

This wasn't a specifically favourite piece of art I saw, however I liked how the whole piece is arranged colour wise for and effective composition.

(Above Nam June Paik "Nixon" 1965-2002, Video, 2 monitors, colour and sound, Tate Modern Art Museum)

(Above Nam June Paik, Untitled, 1974, 1982-1983, Television case, framed canvas, wooden panel, cloth, pastel, oil paint and television antennae, Tate Modern Art Museum)

(Above Nam June Paik, Untiteled, 1975, oil paint on wood, Tate Modern Art Museum)

(Above Nam June Paik "Bakelite Robot" 2002, Video, 5 monitors, bakelite radios, Tate Modern Art Museum)

Overall Paik's artwork was very unusual to me, as it varied between mediums such as paint and wood, to something more unexpected and technological like TV monitors and video. I don't think I would use technological mediums for my theme, however it has allowed me to think about different mediums that can be used in art and once again another artist has shown how something can take another function, for instance "Bakelite Robot" is made up of monitors and radios which have been used for the purpose of creating a robot figure, unlike their real manufactured purpose. 

Above Cy Twombly, Untitled (Bacchus) 2006-2008, acrylic on canvas, Tate Modern Art Museum)

Scale in comparison to a human, what made this painting look even more greater was the fact that it was displayed in a large space with high ceilings and lots of natural light, if it would have been displayed in any other part of the museum with lower walls and dimmer lights , it would overwhelm the room and it would not appear as large and effective.

Another key aspects of these paintings, was the use of a single toned bold colour, which is hard not to notice even from a distance, hence it immediately catches they eye. Personally this style and technique of mark making has been my favourite, it has however given me consideration about if my final piece should be a large scale for a more effective and bold outcome.

Overall visiting Tate Modern Art Museum has been a great experience, I found inspiration from various artist, and found specific artist which I would like to analyse and experiment in the style of. I also got to see how different artist express their thoughts and feelings, even if some art pieces were hard to understand or irrelevant, it did make me question myself as to why I like the art piece or why I do not, which may help when analysing my own artwork.