Look....if you can see

Day 8:
During our visit to 'Look', an exhibition at Galerie Sonja Junkers, curated by Rudt Peters, two of my fellow travellers had to physically leave the exhibition space due to a headache and dilated pupils.

Was it because the work was just that mind-blowingly amazing/shockingly bad that it triggered a physical response?

No. It was the exhibition space or 'scenography' by Friedenrike Daumiller, a narrow room lit only by black lights, that had caused such a dramatic reaction. We couldn't see. The pieces were bathed in an eerie purple haze, making it near impossible to 'look' at anything, let alone concentrate on any one work in particular.

It was just so....strange. What was Rudt thinking? Has he lost the plot? Is it some sort of joke? A stubborn act of rebellion? Why curate an exhibition of jewellery where you cannot see the jewellery?

Rudt's reasoning for the bold concept of 'Look' could be a combination of any of these things. I think, within the context of Schmuck, where lighting has been key at every exhibition, Rudt is challenging his audience to really think about the way we look at contemporary jewellery.

No one left 'Look' with an understanding of the collection of jewellery Rudt pulled together. The only way to see pieces of the collection was via digital flash photography, which would transform purple shadows into 'truer' images of the work where colours, materials and details could be seen. While I appreciate the concept of 'Look' as a tool for discussion about the way we look at jewellery, it was a pity that the jewellery was a casualty of a bigger idea.

From now own, I'll make an deal with Rudt - next time I'm bored, lazy or half hearted at a jewellery exhibition or gallery, I will think back to 'Look' and remember how thoroughly irritating it was to miss the chance to see something new. In Rudt's words, featured on the back wall of the exhibition, I will look, 'As Long As It Lasts'.

Image taken from Look, curated by Ruudt Peters presented by Caroline van Hoek at Galerie Sonja Junkers

V.