Passersby on the Oxford Street side of the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAMPFA) are now getting an eyeful of art. The museum’s newly commissioned Atrium Projects features an installation by UC Berkeley MFA grad Sarah Cain, titled “Sarah Cain: To-you know-you.” The work’s title, according to museum materials, “is inspired by the dedication in Diane Seuss’s poetry collection frank: sonnets (2021), implying a direct and intimate connection with the reader that reflects the spirit of Cain’s own creative practice.” Passersby were also able to witness the creation of the installation, said BAMPFA Chief Curator Margot Norton, as Cain painted walls, ceiling and placed furniture pieces, canvases and found objects in the Barbara Bakar Atrium. “The response has been remarkable,” said Norton, noting that as soon as the installation opened on Oct. 30, people began sitting on the couches, taking photos and otherwise participating in a piece meant to be participated in. The inspiration for the Atrium Projects arose during the very successful “Making Their Mark” exhibition, said BAMPFA Executive Director Julie Rodrigues Widholm. A sculpture that had stood in a wall niche in the atrium for years was replaced by a piece from “Making Their Mark,” and it transformed the space, she said. She took the idea of converting the atrium to an immersive space to BAMPFA donors, who loved the idea. However, the abundant light flooding the atrium, and the fact that BAMPFA doesn’t use gallery monitors there, meant that only certain types of work were appropriate for placement in it-and that led Norton to think of Cain’s art. She’d followed Cain’s work for years, had visited her studio, knew of her connection to the university and was aware she’d created installations in factories, hospitals and many kinds of unconventional spaces, she said. “To-you know-you” was improvised on-site at the museum, “showcasing Cain’s characteristically intuitive and playfully irreverent approach to painting, which draws from a panoply of styles spanning art history and popular culture, embracing high and low,” according to BAMPFA materials. Brilliant colors swoop over the space and furniture, beckoning viewers to come closer. “The viewers complete the work,” Norton said. Visiting the installation each day since the opening, she continues to find “details constantly being revealed when you spend time with it.” Commissioning artists to create work specifically for BAMPFA is incredibly important to both the museum’s mission and its future, Norton said. Like most, if not all, art institutions, it seeks ways to involve visitors more directly and draw in new audiences. Seeing an intriguing installation through a window may well lure in visitors who haven’t bought a ticket yet, she said. Also, every commissioned show is a platform to support the artist, she emphasized, “thinking beyond what [museums] can traditionally do.” The launch of Atrium Projects “advances BAMPFA’s commitment to commissioning new work from leading contemporary artists, complementing the museum’s Art Wall series as well as the commissioned work on display in the MATRIX program,” according to museum materials. Since the Cain installation will be in place through June 6, 2027, BAMPFA will use the time to evaluate which artists should be chosen to continue the series, said Widholm. But, “there is brainstorming happening on a daily basis,” Norton said. Both Norton and Widholm pointed out that the “Atrium Projects” is part of BAMPFA’s rethinking and reactivating of spaces within the museum, including the reopening of its second-floor cafe as the Kopi Bar and Bakery, in partnership with chef Nora Haron. The “Indonesian/Californian” fare includes sandwiches, salads, soups, handmade pastries, coffees and teas. Widholm noted that Haron has brought in pieces from her own collection of antique batiks and other art pieces to complement the food’s themes. Entrance to the museum is not required to visit the cafe.
https://eastbayexpress.com/walk-in-art-connects-with-passersby/
Walk-in art connects with passersby
