Furini Arte Contemporanea 2010

Roma- Via Giulia 8

October 8, 2010- November 27, 2010

www.furiniartecontemporanea.it

By Shanía Mason

Why Ants Can’t Dance: Robert Barta

Currently on display at Furini Arte Contemporanea is a solo-exhibit by Robert Barta. The name of the show is,“Why Ants Can’t Dance”. The exhibit is one that is heavily conceptual. The artist was born in Prague in 1975, but currently lives and works in Berlin.

In the relatively decent sized space that houses the works (mostly three dimensional sculptures) of Barta has one particular artwork that heavily stands out, it is one that shows a cactus whose arms are hugged by a orange hula hoop. In our daily lives, it is very rare that we would encounter such a display of the two objects (a cactus and a hula hoop) as a unified object. In other words, it is more likely possible the we may see a cactus alone or even amongst other plants, or a hula hoop by itself or in the company of other leisurely objects, but never the two together. This notion of the confusion that is brought to a viewer who witnesses contrasting objects paired together in order to represent a single idea is associated with the theme of Robert Barta’s artworks. The theme of the artist’s exhibit is the importance of the idea rather than the object/s it/themselves. This is a solid representation of conceptual art.

Conceptual art is art that is based primarily on conveying a concept or idea rather than aiming for a sort of appreciation of aesthetic value, or concern with material.

When we analyze the significance of the seemingly random and unparallel pairing of the cactus and the hula hoop, an element of nature (the cactus) contrasted against a symbol of an evolved world (plastic hula hoop) we as uninformed viewers are left in a state of perplexity. We are confused because the visual display of the cactus and hula hoop is not one that can be easily justified in the way that something such as a pencil resting on top of a table can be. If we were to see a pencil on a table we could easily make sense of the scene by assuming that perhaps some sort of written work will be or has been completed; we can pair the visual imagery of a pencil on a table to a mundane act of our daily lives. However, we cannot easily make the same or similar inferences with the interaction of a hula hoop and a cactus.

The hula hoop and the cactus is a symbol of mental orientation and the need for an understanding of accessing one’s understanding and ability to analyze the concept of art. It is through the cactus and the hula hoop that Robert Barta’s work demonstrates the ability of an object’s significance to override its aesthetic value. With the cactus and hula hoop, we are become less concerned with the appearance of the two objects but more with why the two have been coupled together, its meaning, and its connection to an overarching theme.

The artist has successfully created a strong connection representation of the meaning on conceptual art and its association with contemporary art. Overall, what first appears to be confusion and a sheer senseless, later becomes a mental liberator in the way that the viewer is urged to think openly about the work of art.