| The work of Angela Bulloch is complex and versatile. She produces light and sound works, drawing machines, interactive installations, series of photographs, video programs, and works consisting of text. Behind her work’s diversity of form, technique, and presentation, there always lies a focused concern for public structures and social systems. Just as these processes and behaviors have no static character, her works have no fixed form or order. They consist of installations and compositions of multiple elements that are selected and arranged for a specific location. |  |
De Pont Foundation for Contemporary Art
The work of Angela Bulloch is complex and versatile. She produces light and sound works, drawing machines, interactive installations, series of photographs, video programs, and works consisting of text. Behind her work’s diversity of form, technique, and presentation, there always lies a focused concern for public structures and social systems. Just as these processes and behaviors have no static character, her works have no fixed form or order. They consist of installations and compositions of multiple elements that are selected and arranged for a specific location. The content of this exhibition, which has been organized in collaboration with Modern Art Oxford, the Power Plant in Toronto, and Secession in Vienna, also varies with each museum; some elements have been changed or placed in different configurations.
Angela Bulloch lives and works in London and Berlin. In 1997 she was among those nominated for the Turner Prize. Soon she came to be regarded as one of the “Young British Artists,” but by no means does her work derive its meaning from sensational subject matter or a controversial means of presentation. The work does not lend itself to explicit interpretation but offers, instead, an abundance of experiences and meanings. Because of this it functions, in museum presentations, not so much according to the usual standards of uniqueness and an object-like character, but more in terms of process and participation. This makes it difficult to ascribe any sort of designation to her work. Bulloch resists all “linguistic” definitions that ignore the process-oriented aspect of the work. To her, meanings are not fixed in definitions; they exist only in terms of relationships and comparisons. Perhaps the most characteristic example of this are the rules compiled by Bulloch: a multitude of instructions, regulations, and rules related to different areas of social intercourse. By taking these rules out of their ordinary context, isolating them, and making them public again in another context, Bulloch presents their matter-of-factness as undermined, and offers an amazing view of social structures.
Bulloch wishes not only to expose such hidden structures but also to provide—through specific locations, circumstances, or objects—insight on behavior and the interaction of ideas. She has made various installations involving light and sound, such as Crowd Sound Piece and Laughing Crowd Piece in 1990, where the visitor imperceptibly controls the equipment by way of sensors. With the interactive works Sound Chairs (1991) and Sound Clash Benches (1996) the audience itself influences the sound and the appearance of image fragments. During the 90s she produced a variety of “drawing machines,” of which the response to the presence and movement of people influences the execution of line. These works do not aim for the surprise effect of a mechanical trick. Bulloch has not concealed the technique; she wants viewers to experience the way in which they are involved in a process of actions and events. For this she often makes striking use of furniture in her installations. Chairs, benches, and beanbags offer the visitor the opportunity to take the time to observe in calm surroundings. Bulloch has made these an actual part of her installations.
In her work participation and cooperation play a role in a different way as well: when developing and carrying out many projects, she works together with designers, technicians, and DJs. Here her concern is not only the added expertise but also, just as with the drawing machines, the relativeness of the artist’s own originality.
