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NARR:
Tinny-sounds fill the dark room. There's nothing to see. So visitors just stare at a black screen stretched floor-to-ceiling.
After a few minutes, a blurry image emerges on the screen. It's a man in a trench coat, kicking a metal bucket down the street late at night. He waits for traffic to slow, and crosses the street, kicking the bucket like a soccer ball. (Bucket Ambi) After a while, he sticks his foot in the bucket and flips it into his hand … the film ends.
Some visitors said the visual image changed the meaning of the sound.
ACT:
"Without the picture … there's two different visuals you can have but when you see what it really is … it's a whole different thing."
"You don't know - you're like is it scraping on gravel… or what is it? It's better than American Idol."
NARR:
The five-minute video is called "Phat Free," that's "phat" with a P-H. It was created by David Hammons, an American artist who is making his film debut at The Met's new exhibition.
Staff in the museum's Department of Photographs have worked for five years collecting exhibits like Hammons'.
Assistant Curator Doug Eklund says they are trying to incorporate moving pictures and sound into the Met … to keep up with multi-media trends in contemporary art.
ACT: DOUG (:15)
"One of the hallmarks of contemporary art is the dissolutions of boundary between media … between photography, painting, film, performance … so if you are going to collect in any way seriously, you have to almost be willing to cross those boundaries as well."
NARR:
The exhibit includes a variety of art in addition to Hammon's bucket-kicking video.
A small TV sticking out from the wall plays a surveillance video that is considered a work of art. An artist slogged through 1,200 hours of tape to create the 40-minute feature. The surveillance camera monitors the everyday activities of the late Pat Hearn, a well-known art dealer. Hearn was a performance artist herself …. … and the installation aims to contrast the public and private self.
In an adjoining room, a giant screen projects an angelic-looking two-year-old boy … who takes drags from a cigarette, and blows rings of smoke at the camera. The 19-second spot is created using special effects … and is meant to portray how the mass media targets children.
The entire exhibit is named Closed Circuit. It will be presented at The Met until April 29.
This is Ellen Gabler, Columbia Radio News.