The ICA in
Boston was the ideal location for Holler’s "Half Fiction," his first
solo show in the United States. Indirect light, oddly-shaped rooms and
hollowed-echoing floors heightened the mysterious shapes and images Holler
provides. This particular show delved into our doubt and uncertainty, forcing
us to indirectly face our fears. His installations provided not only an
experience of awkward perception, but also a metaphor for passage.
The first
installation was the Choice Corridor, "a disorienting and gradually darkening passageway
that visitors must navigate with only "non-visual stimuli". When
initially entering the piece, the audience encountered a long hallway, dimly
lit, narrow and ominous. As one proceeded to the end of the corridor, a u-turn
had to be made, followed by another, before the scene was complete darkness, a
darkness we normally reserve only for the bedroom and for sleep. The visitor
was constantly aware that this was an art exhibit within a museum, though the
quiet, pitch black maze was deafening from the pulse which raced as she or he
continued on. At each turn, one could not tell if it was be better to turn
back, or proceed forward, or if in fact one was still even going forward at
all. As confusing and stimulating as the structure was, this was is in no way a
shabby funhouse atmosphere. There was no logical reason for fear, it was an
empty hallway in the same museum we had entered just moments ago; but Holler
successfully moved his audience a step past comfort within minutes. At a last
corner, the light became visible, and the visitor "moved into the
light". A warm security overcomes you, and you exit unsure why you had
been so uneasy. The museum is again full of viewers, staff and normalcy. It was
only the subject, yourself, who created the unnecessary element of fear.
In The
Forest, the viewer
was placed in yet another state of slight confusion and disorientation. In
this installation, the visitor wears a pair of glasses which place a small LCD
monitor in front of each eye. As the vision plays in front of you, it appears
to be a slow walk thought a snowy, desolate woods at dusk. As you make your way
deeper, both cameras cross, and continue to diverge in opposite directions. The
resulting visual stimulation leaves the viewer confused, lost and eager to come
back to normalcy. Your brain desperately attempts to make sense of the
wandering sight lines, but you cannot center them. The effectiveness of the
engagement is overwhelming, truly a similar feeling to hiking and experiencing
the momentary adrenaline rush that only comes from possibly being lost.
Perhaps
the most invigorating piece was Light Corner
style=’font-size:8.0pt;font-family:Verdana’>. Upon entering the room, an
immediate sensation of intense heat comes from the glowing structure. It is a
free standing corner wall, which contains almost 1800 light bulbs flickering at
a frequency of 7.8hz, and it "synchronizes with the viewer’s brain,
inducing strong retinal after-images." With eyes closed, the viewer
experiences a kaleidoscope of colors, and the body is enveloped in a warming
glow, as if submersed in a strobe-lit incubator. The Light Corner
style=’font-size:8.0pt;font-family:Verdana’> room leaves you with a weary head,
as if you’ve been on a carnival ride one too many times, but it is also
strangely soothing.
Completing
the journey begun in the darkness, the last two stops in the exhibition were Sphere
style=’font-size:8.0pt;font-family:Verdana’> and Slide
style=’font-size:8.0pt;font-family:Verdana’>. Holler has always been fascinated
with travel: these two creations are structures intended for physical
transportation. The aptly titled Sphere stood isolated, and appeared out of place inside the
large, empty room. Designed with steel and brass, it is industrious, sterile,
and overpowering. Slide was the path back out to the main entrance. Designed to instill a
feeling of an out-of-control experience, the two-story structure was the adult
version of the encased slides of our neighborhood parks. Ironically, rather
than closing the exhibit with a final reaffirming experience, after coming so
far and moving past various levels of growth and comfort, Holler brought the
viewer full circle, back to childhood and the naivety with which she or he
began. |
