Friday, September 05, 2008

undressing and re-dressing the work

George Szirtes on the Vilhelm Hammershoi's exhibition at the Royal Academy of Arts:

[...]the simplicity is that peculiar Scandinavian Calvinist simplicity that is permanently pitched between sin and mourning. The rooms are obsessively tidy, the light fixedly non-sensual. If it caught so much as a sniff of voluptuousness it would flap its black skirts and scream.

These are spaces to hover in, and maybe that's why they called the exhibition The Poetry of Silence. Put it another way. Think of Ingmar Bergman remaking Wim Wenders's Wings of Desire. Or put it still another way...

Though I hadn't heard of Hammershoi until five days ago when I read about him on Ms. Baroque's blog, I already like him. And the doors.

7 comments:

Banno said...

I already like him too. And Ms. Baroque's blog. Thanks for posting this.

Anonymous said...

Spacebar, I hope you accept this award as a mark of my deep admiration for your work.

ano

Space Bar said...

Banno: my pleasure!

anitha: thanks!

dipali said...

Something for you on my blog, Space Bar.

Fëanor said...

Michael Palin presented a lovely hour-long programme on Hammershøi a few years ago; recently shown again on BBC. He wanted to form a Friends of Hammershøi society, and you can sign up here (but am not sure if the site is active any longer).

Fëanor said...

Here's a good summary of Palin's documentary. Have fun!

Space Bar said...

feanor: thanks for the links!