On Sunday 30th October, we went to see this exhibition in Brighton with Selina. We travelled together by train and arrived at Brighton at 1.30 pm.
Unfortunately, we had the time to only see two exhibitions, as they were all closing at 4 pm and it was the last day.
Anyway, the first exhibition was STATE OF CONTROL.
As soon as we walked trough the door, a guy welcomed us and showed the place, an office rearranged for the exhibition. CONTROL consisted of 5 different parts.
The first one was dedicated to the work of SIMON MENNER, Fake arrest and Hand to hand combat. The images belong to the STASI archives and were meant to be a sort of visual instructions on how to deal with dissidents among the population.
The pictures are not professionally made, they serve the purpose of literally showing actions to be taken in various situations, like the fake arrest and hand to hand combat.
"Many of these snapshots seem absurd; they may even be amusing. And yet we ought not to loose sight of the intention that led the STASI agents to take them. These photographs document the repressive measures taken by a totalitarian state in order to create terror and fear among the population." (extract from Menner website)
Opposite to Menner's images, we saw RAFAEL MILACH's, The Winners, works.
The caption said:
"The Winners is dedicated to winners of various state and local competitions held between 2010-2013 and supported by the Belarusian authorities. The list of the winners also includes the best in contests promoting beauty or public space maintenance. Winners are present in kolkhozes, schools, public institutions, nightclubs, village discos and on Boards of Honour in almost each Belarusian town."
These incredible images (about 50) were installed on plywood, not completely attached to it. The viewer had the possibility of guessing what every single image was about and then pulling it up and read the real caption. This part of the exhibition was my favourite. The images were so outstanding and weird! Apparently there was a prize for everyone and for everything.
1. Zhodino. Natalya and Konan, the best couple in love.
2.Volozhin. Arri, the multi-champion in dog beauty contests.
3. Elena, the best milkmaid of the Slutsk region.
4.Natalya, the winner of the contest for the best lookalike of Jennifer Lopez.
5.Asinovshina. Olga, the mother of the best large family in the region of Smorgon.
In the second room, on one side, we saw JOACHIM SCHMID's work, X MARK THE SPOT.
The images in the series were about tourists taking picture of theirselves on the X marked in the large street were JFK was assassinated. The interesting about this work was how they were taken. A webcam was positioned in a building in the exact position from where the shot went out.
Opposite to Joachim Schmid work, there was SARAH PICKERING, Public Order.
"Riots and scenes of civil unrest are a daily occurrence in a small town called Denton. Despite the heavy police presence the violence is only ever temporarily suppressed. Another day brings more trouble - an incident at the underground station; barricaded streets; an injured civilian to bring to safety.
Denton is a set used by the police, designed to provide a realistic backdrop for a riot. The violent aggressor is defined here by the estate he could inhabit. Although absent from the photographs, his identity can be pieced together from the elements of social stereotyping in this purpose-built environment. The Public Order series of photographs documents the attention to detail and simultaneous lack of realism within this artificial environment. This is a living invention, a fantasy placed within the real world - an attempt to make violence and disorder tangible and knowable."
Another interesting space was the CONFESSIONAL BOOTH. In it, you had the possibility for a session of Portfolio Review.
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