The Whitney and Studio Museum Harlem

I spent my morning in The Whitney Museum of American Art. There were a few interesting exhibitions, including a look at performance art in Manhattan in the 1970s, and Robert Indiana's Beyond Love.

I must admit, by this point I was suffering a little from museum fatigue. It was difficult to take in what I was seeing. I felt Indiana's work was just the same thing repeated over and over, which I'm sure has a point, but I was in shut down by this time. It was still interesting to see so many objects, films and photographs from performance art in the 70s. Performance art by its nature is ephemeral, and many of the artists didn't allow the performances to be recorded, and even if they were, it isn't the same experience, although I was interested to see one of the works had been purposely filmed, and in 3D, to give viewers who didn't attend as close to the same experience as possible. There are no rules for performance art, sometimes you just have to be there, other times it's intended to be seen as a recording. Yet does this cross over into film?

For me, the most interesting experience came when I was leaving. I was in the lift heading to the lobby with a local couple; they were discussing the attendants all standing, because in Europe they have stools and seats. The man politely explained their discussion when I looked over at them, and I told them that I work in a museum in Australia, where we all have to stand. The conversation turned to why I was in New York, and upon explaining that I study art history and was here as part of a class, the lady reached into her purse and handed me her business card; in case I become a curator.

I later looked her up. Lisa Fromartz, a local artist who has been exhibited around the world, and collected by MoMA, the Brooklyn Museum, and a range of private institutions.

This was it. This is why people come to New York. The person you meet in the lift can be a contact. They may be an artist, a curator, a collector, someone who could help your career, or whose career you could help.

Lunch, a subway trip, and a terrifying walk through East Harlem, and I was at Studio Museum Harlem. A pleasant change from the massive, overwhelming museums and galleries, Studio Museum is still a good size, with multiple levels and plenty to see. A museum for artists of African descent, both locally and internationally, this gives an opportunity to see art you may otherwise not get to see. New York's own Guerilla Girls pointed out most artists exhibited in museums are white (not to mention male) in a letter to Eli Broad; The Broad Foundation collection contained 194 artists, 96% of which were white. This lack of representation is the subject of one of the artworks on display. Charles Gaines' String Theory: Romare Bearden in the Body Language exhibition.

To me, this highlighted the importance of Studio Harlem. It gives voice to people who are still discriminated against. I thought one of the artworks in the Afrofuturist exhibition, The Shadows Took Shape linked back heavily to this idea. A plywood reconstruction of the Millenium Falcon from Star Wars, but inside was not a futuristic space ship, it was Studio Harlem itself. The gallery was copied into the artwork, featuring tables with books. This was it. This was the way forward, through education and the gallery.