Entering the darkened Projects Gallery in the Salt Lake Art Center you are met with a wall-size projection of a serene underwater landscape that is suddenly displaced when a fully clothed man plunges into the water from above. Accompanied by a roar of sound and a luminous explosion of bubbles and turbulence, he slowly sinks with arms outstretched, his body limp and motionless. Rays of light undulate as streams of glowing bubbles ascend to the disturbed surface. Midway down, his descent slows and finally stops, his body remaining suspended in space. Is the man dead or alive? He does not move, but the water moves him. Very slowly, he begins to rise until he reaches the surface. There, air bubbles emerge from his mouth and he begins his involuntary descent again. He sinks into the depths and his body then disappears into the darkness. The landscape returns to its original peaceful state. Then, unexpectedly, the man plunges into the water again with a shocking explosion of light, sound and movement, as the video loops once more. Exhibition held in the Projects Gallery space.
Video as a medium in the visual arts dates back to the 1960s, with artists previous to this time working in film. A unique quality of film and video in the visual arts is the timed sequence, which allows for the construction or deconstruction of narrative. In today's media savvy society, film and video footage is readily available in varied formats, and is often appropriated, collaged into, and/or manipulated within new contexts by contemporary artists. Exhibition held in the Projects and Main Gallery spaces.
An exhibit of photographs by teenagers from Elko, Nevada and Salt Lake City, Utah with interactive audio ane video components. Exhibition held in the Street Level Gallery space.
Video affords Mr. Hill access to another dimension-time-that may do for the contemporary viewer what inverted eyes and noses did decades ago. By juxtaposing visual and audible information on a screen and orchestrating the consumption of that image through editing, Mr. Hill in a way reintroduces the viewer to time and how it shapes aesthetic experience. The show is comprised of four major installations, "Wall Piece" (2000), "Language Willing" (2002), Accordions" (2001-2002), "Crossbow" (1999), each with a unique focus. Exhibition held in the Main and Street Level Gallery spaces.
