Funny but while reading through various art news today two different art exhibitions in different locations created a synthesis around the same core questions. It started while reading about Tim Crouch's new play at the Whitechapel Gallery, 'England'. It narrates a mini-exchange between a Western art dealer and non-Western heart donor's widow, both who are connected solely through survival, an art piece is exchanged for a second chance at life. Various dichotomies arise from the work via symbolism intended within subject such as West/non-West, Heart/heartless, Art/Life, Art/Heart, Art with a heart/Art without a heart, Life/Death, Art as financial object/Art without financial value. Then you have to centre all of this within the title 'England', how is our art valued all over the world? How do we value our art? Has England's art lost value? Have we lost the heart in our art? Does art matter more to us as financial object or heart gripping power?
From this the next article read came as sad disappointment in terms of capitalism, globalisation and financial power within the world. Western Australia's Burrup peninsula contains aboriginal carvings that are believed to pre-date present art historical carving recordation.However it is shockingly at present under threat from a liquid natural gas plant. Those who live there are said to be devastated understandably so as it can be said areas of the non- Western world have a connection with nature that some would say we in the West have lost, developed over or left behind in our numbing of our natural instincts and sensuality. A touring festival, 'Origins-Festival of First Nations' around London at present covers theatrical performances, shamanistic expression and healing, films from Canada, Australia,New Zealand and America. Named because all nations involve people indigenous to countries of colonisation with events such as a theatre piece about the Maori Battalion in Second World War Italy. It sounds like the festival will be a great eye-opener to what Bourriard would call translation expressing the relativism and deconstruction taking place as our world becomes more interconnected dialetically. Unheard opinions, expressions and understandings of the West and other nations history and understanding of them will be expressed.Together with a reminder of how spirituality, art, nature and healing interact in relation to our artificial made 'gallery space' controlled by market power. Will non-Western art be more powerful to the heart of humans, more representative of real life, spirituality or is this being eurocentric in itself, though if you think how much Hirst's collection raised not long ago you could say not. He himself as many artists challenges life and death, nature and art in fact he turns the reality of nature into a huge commodity?You could say he tries to control nature/life, 'preserve it'?
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