BACKGROUND

I visited the exhibition ‘Capturing the moment’ at Tate Modern. My main purpose of visiting was to see in person the work by Akunyili Crosby – a transcultural artist that I admire very much and I have learnt a lot from her work as well as her lectures. I have been researching her over the last two years and it was rather emotional seeing her large scale work exhibited at Tate Modern. This is a short blog to record that visit and to capture my feelings at the time.

Visit date: 15th January 2024

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REFLECTIONS

My thoughts while analysing the work:

The use of photos denoting memory, mixed with hard-lined pieces of furniture such as the chairs from the reality of today is a good juxtaposition of a journey. Also items on the table with memory significance such as household items (I believe were from her grandmother’s house after the grandmother died), with faded images around photographs. A good metaphor for (fading) memories, journeys travelled and the present time.

My feelings – How do I feel seeing this in person for the first time after researching this artist for two years:

Emotional, overwhelmed, much more impactful than I ever expected, too much to take in, didn’t want to leave.

Size is much bigger than I expected: each piece is around 7ft x 7ft. Painting is on paper – I wouldn’t normally do such a large painting on paper so it was good to see how it could work and I liked the way it was hung – with clips around the edges. No framing or mounting which made the piece feel lively for me.