Art lecture and show

Kevin Kremler: Postcards from the Grey Area

MFA Thesis Exhibition: Kevin Kremler

           Kevin's lecture was not like many other lectures I have been to at UNR, and I have been to quite a lot. One of the differences was that this lecture filled up quite quick. There were people out the door and sitting on the ground because there was no more room! During his lecture, he really got to the point. He stated what his art is, what he wanted out of it, like the ideas and outcomes, and also where he currently stands and what he wants to do after he receives his masters. Kevin showed pictures on a slide show and quickly explained his past art. Unlike other artists, they normally mention their past, where they got started, and their family, which most have an impact on. Kevin, however, did not talk about any of that. He just focused on his work, how he created them, etc. He also did not show pictures of his artwork. He kind of based his lecture of the ideas of others and how he came to engage in this type of artwork with ideas of other artists. I had already seen Kevin's gallery before listening to his lecture, so I understood most of what he was talking about and explaining.

           Kevin creates sculptures. His sculptures are ones that people can interact with as well as really thinking and engaging with the art pieces. I don't remember exactly what his pieces were called, but definitely interactive. Kevin explained a little more in detail why he wanted this. Unlike other artistic who create sculptures, the viewer can not interact with the work, and he made it quite clear that wanting his viewer to interact was what he wanted.

           Overall, the lecture was entertaining and not once was I bored or felt like drifting off, unlike other lectures I have been a victim of. If you could see the gallery, I would definitely recommend it. It is pleasant.


Kevin's Gallery

           I enjoyed Kevin's gallery much more than a lot of other artist's galleries, probably because of the way people can interact with the pieces. I understood that this effects the viewer and it effected me in a good way! One of his pieces was set up with a bunch of cameras and a computer screen. There was also a red button with instructions on it. What the viewers does is sits facing this big canvas. They hold the big red button and eventually this camera takes a photo of your back. At first, I though the person interacting with it was sitting the wrong way, but once the picture was printed, it all made sense. The picture was of the viewer “drawing themselves.” At least that is what it looked like. And this picture was on a post card, which is what I am assuming is the reason his lecture and gallery is called what it's called. Another piece that was very interactive was the big sand one in the middle. There were four buckets filled with different colored sand and in the middle was a huge sculpture that let the viewer dump sand in and create beautiful colors on the floor. It is really hard to describe.

           The other few pieces that were in Kevin's gallery were ones that were not so interactive, but definitely electronic. Those were also hard to explain. I guess you just needed to be there to see it. Not only did Kevin make sculptures, but he also drew this large canvas piece which looked like it was made all out of crayons which appealed to many viewers as well.

           Overall, his gallery was very impressive and I suspect that a lot of viewers were delighted to engage in them.