On Sunday I took the children to get our brainwaves recorded while we looked at art. I was fascinated by the premise - some people say that looking at art evokes absolutely no response, others say it's good for you, particularly emotionally and mentally. So this Art Fund experiment asked you to wear a little headset that records brainwaves and records them, turning them into 3D patterns while you look at the pictures. You need to have someone else record the screen for you - my son obliged!
Thicker, spiralling lines mean you're figuring something out, flashes of colour is recognition or familiarity.
The work we had to view was by Watts, not an artist I'm a particular fan of. I opted to look at some landscapes but I wasn't particularly impressed by them... I think it shows! I should have asked if I could wander into the Japanese Edo Pop exhibition - I found that far more interesting!
The skills on display here were just incredible. It reminded me of the image that we had to decipher from the CSM collection that was one of these images or something very similar I think - of famous stage actors. I'd like to have been able to linger for longer but the children weren't as interested as I was.
At the end of the exhibition there was a lovely selection of hanging prints which I really appreciated:
I liked being able to walk around them and really see the paper and the light coming through it.
We also saw Angie Lewin's exhibition at the contemporary (the free, selling part of the Watts Gallery). I love Angie's prints so it was really exciting to see them up close!
It was also particularly lovely to see some of her blocks, sketchbooks and tools which were beautifully presented (of course!).
