Dreams

I went and saw an amazing exhibit at the Hirshhorn Museum. It is called The Cinema Effect: Dreams. Twenty-one different artists contributed to the collection. In Dreams, the artists use the digital technology and techniques of the cinema to create an almost hallucinogenic experience. I was transported into their worlds where anything goes…

Each artist had a different approach to his or her work, yet the major emphasis for all of them were consistent. To me, each piece focused on crossing into a dreamlike state of mind. Reality is definitely questioned. This was apparent from the start of the exhibit. I entered through a plastic sheet hung from the ceiling into a room shrouded in complete darkness. I accidentally bumped into a stranger that seemed just as confused as I was. As we exchanged apologies, I noticed a small arrow illuminated on to the floor. The arrow led me into many more dark rooms filled with whimsical and scary pieces of art. I felt as if all my sensibilities were taken away at the door and this made it very easy to focus on each piece. It was a three-dimensional full-body experience.

There are too many pieces to mention them all, so I will only give you the highlight of my trip. In one giant pitch-black room, I found Anthony McCall's You and I, Horizontal. This piece consisted of a projector giving off a large circle of light. The way one must enter the exhibit, the light is shining directly towards you. This definitely throws of your depth perception of how to get through the room and what exactly this beam of light is supposed to be doing. After allowing my eyes to adjust, I realized the beam was creating a half circle on the opposite wall. I actually walked into the middle of the projected light and it was like sensory overload. I honestly felt like I could have been on drugs or something. It was so fantastic to look into the light…there were cloudy rings that were moving all throughout the light. It was not smoky in the room, so I have no idea how this effect was created, but I definitely enjoyed it. This piece was very simple when it came to the elements required to create the actual finished product, but the mood that was produced as a result was intense. I felt as if I had been transported back into my childhood while being trapped between a state of consciousness and sleep. It was a very interesting and bizarre experience.

If you get a chance, check this exhibit out. Dreams runs until May 11, 2008. It really is an extraordinary experience.