Phillipe Parreno - Serpentine Gallery

21 January 2011

The space of the inside and outside of the gallery was involved in this exhibition of Parreno's video installation, it was a part of it.

The spaces were modified for the purpose of the films, but in my perception also to show the space of the gallery.

There are resemblances between the South london Gallery, who was showing films of Manon de Boer, and the films of Parenno. The content of both works were about something more abstract, untouchable and not straightforward. The films were about something that wasn't literally imagined in visual or audio aspects.

The quality of the projections were both nearly as good as in the cinema. There seemed to be no limit on the technical quality of the display.

Another resemblance between these two galleries was, the fact that they lead you trough their gallery with films of approximately 10 minutes each. And even though the Serpentine is a bigger gallery, they showed about the same amount of films as the SLG.

To go back to the show of Parreno in the Serpentine.

The films seemed to complement the space, (or the other way around?)

The first film of the children demonstrating and shouting 'THERE IS NO REALITY' was shown in the smallest space of the 4, no windows near, no notion of the outside. By making this decision, showing images of the street in this particular space, the outside world enters the context of the inside.

The 3rd film (see photo's) was shown in a high space on a very big screen with alienating elements in the story. The space and size of the screen overwhelmed the viewer.

The 'straightforward' rectangle shaped rooms with windows of which the blinds closed before the film started, had screenings of films that had a kind of narrative to them. You were left in the dark, but in the end there was light again, with the snow outside and fake condensation spots on the windows which were actually glass engravings.