Abraham Avnisan.

Sin Sol, Forest Memory:

The Between Bodies exhibits were ones that I found rather peculiar. I’ve been to a few different museums in this area and even out of the country, but Avnisan’s stood out as something that I hadn’t quite seen before. As shown in the photo above, he had utilized a projector and created a forest scene, almost a taste of virtual reality. On each side of the room, two iPads were suspended in mid-air. If one were to hold the iPad, they’d be able to see poetry written on the walls, along with a CGI fairy. Something very different from traditional art shows and displays. It left me wondering what the artist was trying to communicate. Though I may not have a formal answer or thought-up concept that describes what I feel as though is happening in it, from a more surface level, the experience was fun and new. I found this piece quite creative, replicating the serenity and calmness of a forest through a medium that not many artists use. While graphic design, film, virtual reality (via headset), etc. is common for technological art, this was a less common way of presenting it. The poetry that appeared on the screen of the iPad, was also voiced in an audio clip that looped. It was very fascinating, but also made you think about what it all could possibly mean or signify.

My Take:

Reading through Avnisan’s writing, a lot of questions about life and death, even survival had been provoked. If you were to simply look at the forest, there’s a sense of peace that washes over you. However, I interpreted this more as almost a façade; it’s deception that arises from making judgments solely as an outsider. Once you really listen to the words that are verbally spoken around you and experience the virtual component, there’s a hidden aspect that comes to the light. There’s a sense of heaviness (I personally felt), that you can’t seem to shake. For me, Avnisan was implicitly showing how multilayered our world is. How something can look a certain way from an outside perspective, but once you’re subjected into its interworks, thoughts, beliefs, ideologies, etc. it may completely differ from what you expected.