Category Archives: Concrete to Data

Concrete to Data has Ended, in the Physical Space..

CeetoDee

 Concrete to Data has officially come to an end at the Steinberg Museum of Art, but continues online in various ways.

A huge THANK YOU to all of the participating artists, museum staff members, contributors, community members and visitors who came to support the show. Although the works have been removed from the physical space, the transition of the show now lives on virtually via this url.

We will continue to create programs and opportunities for collaboration…

Ryan Seslow, Curator.

The Concrete to Data Transition from 3/21/15 to Forever

 

Concrete To Data photographed by Alexandra Pospelova
Concrete To Data photographed by Alexandra Pospelova

3/17/15

The Concrete to Data Transition from 3/21/15 to Forever.

Be it known, the Concrete to Data exhibition will commence in the Steinberg Museum of Art on Saturday 3/21/15 at 3PM. Thats right, this is the final week to see the show in the physical form. When the exhibition ends the murals are buffed. The computers will be shut down and taken away. The works on canvas, in print and framed on the wall will be removed. The sculptures will be returned and the pedestals will be put away.

But the documentation will live here on this url forever.

More news surrounding the Concrete to Data website is coming soon.

3/7/15 Meet the Concrete to Data Curator

Concrete To Data photographed by Alexandra Pospelova
Concrete To Data photographed by Alexandra Pospelova

This coming Saturday 3/7 is the perfect day to come and visit the Concrete to Data exhibition at the Steinberg Museum of Art. From 11 AM – 3 PM the exhibition curator Ryan Seslow will be present in the museum to connect and answer questions about the show.

For more information about the exhibition (including directions to the museum) –> https://concretetodata.com/about

Looking forward.

Concrete to Data through the Lens of Alexandra Pospelova

 2/28/15

Concrete to Data through the Lens of Alexandra Pospelova

I am excited to share a powerful series of Concrete to Data photographs taken by artist Alexandra Pospelova. The selected works give us a peek into the photographers process and how the space can be viewed.  We are taken through various complimentary color combinations and compositions. I asked Alexandra for a statement about shooting the exhibition and sharing her vision on the show.

Concrete To Data photographed by Alexandra Pospelova

“Unique, Moving, Powerful! Concrete to Data is a unique show because graffiti in its nature is an outdoor art form, while here, in Steinberg Museum of Art, one sees it in a totally different environment. It is moving because it makes the viewer look for hidden meanings by overwhelming, puzzling and, in some way, provocative quality. It is powerful because of its large scale spray-painted pieces that have more authority to a body viewing it in a space, as something one cannot take in with one glance. It was a pleasure to photograph such a large variety of mediums, creative ideas, and interesting stories that allowed me to penetrate deeper into seeing the essence of graffiti itself. The camera served as a great tool to discern that essence that cannot be viewed with a naked eye, but through some consideration.” 

Alexandra Pospelova is a young artist from Saint-Petersburg, Russia, living and working in New York City. In May of 2015 she will receive her B.F.A in Painting and Photography from Long Island University’s Post campus. Notably, in 2013 Alexandra attended the Firenze ArtiVisive school in Florence. In 2012 she was invited to South Korea, where she exhibited her work in four different cities. Alexandra is currently working on her senior thesis honors show that is about the role of art in the modern world. Her work is mostly acrylic on canvas or paper, and her signature work consists of abstract, simple minimalistic forms. Due perhaps to her early training in the arts, Alexandra likes experimenting with her medium of choice, eventually combining crafts with painting. It is important to her idea that she uses mixed media because it gives her work more expressiveness and precision. As to photography, in like manner, Alexandra appreciates older aesthetics, photo processes that experimented with different medium of choice by using unique techniques.

You can explore more of Alexandra’s work on her website –http://alexandrapo.com

Short-link to this post – http://wp.me/p5Jt5Y-gO

Connecting the Viewer & the Artist at Concrete to Data

2/20/15 

Connecting the Viewer & the Artist at Concrete to Data.

CtoD-Artist-Floor-Plan

Concrete to Data is currently in full swing. The exhibition has been open for just under 3 weeks. As the curator I am really happy with the exhibition as a whole. In an up and coming post I will share an essay about how the show came together. I want to first explain a micro-test that the show is conducting between the viewer, the works of art, the artists in the show and how the museums can play a new role in engaging all of the above. Concrete to Data can be accessed physically and virtually. Physically meaning, the viewer can come to the museum space and view the exhibition in a traditional way by walking around and experiencing the works in person “face to face.” Virtually meaning, the viewer can access the Concrete to Data website and explore the artists bios and individual pages, the works of art in the show and the several other engaging features on the site from any internet connection and device connected to the internet. The viewer can also chose to do both simultaneously.

For the first half of the show’s duration when visitors arrived they were handed only a printed map of the exhibition. The same map (above) lets the viewer know four things. 1. Who the artists are. 2. Where their work is located on the floor plan. 3. The Instagram handle of the artists. 4. The website url for the exhibition.

In the exhibition space there aren’t  labels on the walls that describe the work, the year it was created or the medium used. The viewer has to decide as to how they will obtain that information. To my surprise many of the show’s guests have done just that by snapping photos of the works that they like and posting them to their own Instagram feeds. They tagged back the artists as well. Some are asking specific questions about the works, and some are simply saying what they like about the work or the show as a whole. A lot of the artists are also responding back with statements of gratitude, a series of playful emoticons and replies to specific questions. This says a lot about how shows can be planned with this in mind. I kept this part of things to myself for the most part. The museum’ director Barbara Applegate was briefed and supported the idea. I am really grateful for that as I fully understand the risk involved for the museum staff who has to be on hand for the myriad of questions getting thrown at them each day.

Lecture

(photo by Melissa Delprete)

I was able to speak more about this during two public lectures in the exhibition space this past week. Both graduate and undergraduate level students from the applies arts, art education and art therapy programs were in attendance, as well as those who were simply interested in the show.

By Monday 2/23/15 another aspect of the show will become accessible to the viewers both online and offline. Aside from the museum map with the artists names, location of the work and Instagram handles, the titles, dates of creation, and mediums used will also be present. The viewer can take a paper hand out to work from, or they can pull up https://concretetodata.com to download this feature from various locations on the site. On the site itself each artist has an individual page where you will also find the titles of the work in the show, the dates of creation and the mediums used.

Concrete-to-Data-Artist-List-CtoD-list-2

Download the list of artist’s works with titles, dates, mediums below

–> Concrete to Data Artist List <–

The site also puts features on the collaborative works in the show, some of which have been made on internet platforms, 3D printed or placed in a remote location on the campus where the museum is located. The viewer will now have more choices to make, and access to knowing more information. How will this upgrade affect bringing back those who may have visited this past week?

What is your take on this? Have you been to Concrete to Data exhibition? What are you thoughts on the presentation of how the works are displayed to the viewer? Will you access the information on the site via your mobile device or tablet while you are walking through the exhibition?

Gallery View 5 photo by Alexandra Pospelova

(photo by Alexandra Pospelova)

short-link to this post – http://wp.me/p5Jt5Y-gu

The Wooster Collective at Concrete to Data 2/24 @6PM

Wooster Collective Presentation

Join us on Tuesday February 24th at 6PM for a guest lecture with Marc and Sara Schiller of the Wooster Collective. The lecture will take place in the Concrete to Data exhibition at the Steinberg Museum of Art.  This event is open to the public.

Campus Map and Directions to the Exhibition – Click — > HERE <–

Gallery Map & Artist List – Click –> Artist/Gallery Map <–

General contact information – info@concretetodata.com

Contact the Steinberg Museum of Art – museum@cwpost.liu.edu

Contact the curator here – Ryan@ryanseslow.com

720 Northern Boulevard,
Brookville, NY 11548-1300
Phone: 516-299-4073
Fax: 516-299-2787

Museum Hours:

Monday – Friday – 9:30 – 4:30
Wednesdays – 9:30 – 8:00
Saturdays – 11:00 – 3:00

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