occupied_realism booklet_web.pdf
Occupied Realism" Exhibition. / Portman Gallery at Morpeth School..
What is realism? In art it is often described as a picture, image, film or text that is as close to reality as possible. But what is reality? Is reality what a camera records, in a photograph for example, or what we actually see, experience and feel? It is clear the picture or image of something is different from the thing itself.
When people think of realism there is often an unquestioned view which sees only one reality. This reality is seen as being outside of you and people may think it can be shown in a way that everyone agrees with. But is this always true for everything? Our view of reality changes according to our position in life. Think of the different realities of a slave and master, would they have, necessarily, the same versions of what is real and important?
What is considered to be real and true is important to question, it is often not neutral or unbiased. Think of a newspaper for example, sometimes the truth is distorted or exaggerated. Also some news stories are mentioned more than others, who decides what’s more important?
Occupied Realism brings together three different artists who question what we see as real or accept as part of life. They use three different media, film, painting and real action with documentation. We also want to ask questions about the reality of using art as a social voice – who is able to do this in society?
Artists: Nathan Eastwood, Alexander Mclean, Jonathan Trayner
Drawing, Text and Curation: Andrew Cooper