V&A's Jameel Prize 3 and Pearls Exhibitions

The Jameel Prize 3

Until Mon 21 April 2014
Free

So I spent a great whole day at V&A, and much to my delight this first show was FREE. Great incentive to go to any show. So for that itself it is worth going, but usually the V&A's use of this particular space in the gallery is always very cramped and ram-packed with work, making it more like a antique store than a gallery space where the work isn't fully appreciated at its best. But for The Jameel Prize 3 they did the pieces justice.

WTF is a Jameel Prize I telephathetically hear you ask? Exact same question I had. Well according to the V&A site, the Jameel Prize goes on every other year since 2009, and is an international art prize awarded to contemporary designers and/or artists who use Islamic traditions of art, craft and design in particular to inspire their work. I think I have been to one of these exhibitons before totally oblivious to it all but it is so great of V&A showcasing unknown names in the western world creating modern work! Bravo tick.

So I went totally unaware of the artists and designers current and past work, excited to see what was ganna go on. But between you and me, I have a tendancy to turn my nose up at Islamic art. First,how the fuck are you going to refer to something by a religious belief is fucking beyond me. Especially as all but 3 of the works shown include no fucking religion but the CULTURES that have brought up the CRAFTS and techniques used, we don't go running around western galleries labelling everything Christian art and design. For fuck sake. Yeah. I come from 'Islamic Republic of Iran' so the whole religion branding is a subject I like ranting about.

BACK to the Jameel Prize.

First, you walk up, black walls shielding and tucking away the exhibiton from the busy entrance of the V&A, and on the left is an installation by Fatmi, who we will go further into later on, and oh

WARNING: If you are epileptic, don't go to this or jsut walk faced down through and look only at the left - hand side of the exhibitions.

Anyway yeah very quick flashing writing that is so damn clever. Technologia, 2010, conveys how media gets discoursed so bloody quick and there is so damn much of it that all the images, the meaning, the ideas are all lost through the motion. Already the best use of Islamic writing in art and I ain't even gone in yet!
The exhibiton showcases the shortlisted nominees of the Jameel Prize 3 plus the winner Kayek's work. But it is all brilliant. As you walk in you are drawn to the left, a subtitled video showing off our fabulous nominees talking briefly through their craft.


Concrete Carpet, Nada Debs

Going to start with the centrepiece of this MASSIVE space that I never got to comprehend before this show, like V&A really you've been hiding it again very well. It is a massive Concrete Carpet by Nada Debs, a contemporary designer, she is like the one for top-end unique interior designs for the home. Was quite funny watching people walk in and almost onto the work. As well as concrete sections made out it also has Mother-of-perl and Stainless steel that make up the fringing of the carpet, cos the carpet is solid you know? See what she did there. There lettering all just looses its meaning again, creating a type of pattern with each section highlighting a letter in white. Something very sombre about it, the definitive nature of 'set in stone' writing. Would love to walk on it.

Rahul Jain Textile

Jain Workshop

Now for some lush textiles by Jain, displaying 'The Snow Leopard' and shown above 'The Birds of Paradise'. His designs stay true to the traditional structure of patterns but the patterns themselves re-intepreted, animals within them interacting with one another. That was the most interesting thing about it for me, and the luminescent gold bouncing off this rolled-out fabric hanging against the wall, The Snow Leopard politely containing in a glass box beneath it.

What, as a maker I am sure will fascinate, is great about Jain is though his designs are fresh, new and shit his technique is true. A scene of the studio for his work, hand-loomed like they would of been centuries back, that tradition of craft being so key in his work.

Now the work next to Jain certainly made up a crowd, mainly because it was drawing so tightly spaced together that you are provided with magnifiers to see it. But erm.... shame on you V&A for encouraging such behaviour! Okay, maybe it is interesting and kinda unbeleiveable that this Khan guy has the patience to create so many markings that you need to see it up close, but it ain't like they were tiny written out words or phallic symbols, miniature master pieces in themselves, no they were lines and dots. So, was a shame to see audiences go to queue up straight away to look at the work throguh a magnifying glass for 4 seconds, then drop it down to jsut walk off. I recommend to stand back and look (which was hard because I  ended up with a silhoeutte of heads coverign the bottom half of the hung work) but look at the effect his drawing leaves. This type of mapping out, the spaces he leaves unmarked, exposing this space of land on the globe, or space of emptiness and a void. C'mon guys who totally wasted the piece by not appreciating it as a whole- this being an example that relying on the process and craft is bullshit, and the way something has been done should be viewed at as one. If you're a graphic fanatic or illustrator you will love this but if you love space and texture and purpose Khan is quite a clever sausage.

Waqas Khan

Nasser Al-Salem

For Al-Salem, soz but I will keep it short and sweet. Wasn't balled over, his piece is the poster for the exhibiton but it is the stereotypical piece you expect from 'Islamic Art & Design'. Though th use of perspective, abstractign the writing to create a new depth and space is all very interesting, how it was displayed there on the wall said it all. Walk on by wall-filler. But was a shame I couldn't experience his work as a whole, technical difficulties meant his media work was taken away and we had an cleared plinth. Awks V&A. 



Oi oi, here's our stunning winner! Kayek with her wearable fashion work. Cannot imagine why she won over the others. -_-

No offense to her or her amazing team whose craft is absolutely insane and fashion that I would like to see consistantly, but a fashion-related piece winning, I ain't surprised. Worthy? Well you can make your mind up on that, it's all subjective in the end. These are all worthy shortlisted nominees who are worthy of a mention and I am pleased Kayek is now in my life.

But as a costume student who designs and makes, yeah it is good of me to see this level of craft but the design itself was fucking good. Based on Istanbul's architectural and artistic heritage, these 3 pieces embrace the land and culture and is embodied through the design, the the silhoeutte's look very 1950's Western Housewife balances out with Thatcher shoulder pads, yeah dunno about that, but I can see the sculptural quality that resembles that of the land, I think it is more about the innovative materials used and structure that is the point here.


Dice Kayek. Photo © Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

'Caften', the one on your left, was made from hand-woven lame brocade, based on the top-notch "robes worn by the city's former Ottoman rulers" (V&A), and that decadence is definitely felt as it has a very dense and rich form, emphasised through the folds and pointed shoulders, very hard but perfect for christmas too, looking liek a nutcrackers and shit. Then on your right is the angel of the 3, 'Dome 2' is her name... light-weight cotton organdy, folded to "echo the ribs of lead-covered domes of the city's mosques and palaces". Seeing this one up close and personal, and I mean proper like I was squatting looking up the skirt and all kind of crap,and how these 'ribs' on the front of the dress were woven and layered, there is something quite haunting about it, really conveying that past presense of the city and then some pretty pleats to go round the shoulders and skirt. And then the middle glitsy piece is a COAT. Like I just bought an embroidery coat and omg it is heavy, but I don't wanna be carrying this thing! Looks like it'd be a bitch to carry. She's called 'Hagia Sophia', and she is a white satin coat with hand-stitched embroidery with acienet glassbeads, inspried by Byzantine Mosaics. Very bird-predator like, very nice to look at. You can imagien this was the one everyone was getting told off about because NO PHOTOGRAPHY THANK YOU.


But MY DAYS I think this piece parellel to Kayak's was delicious! Literally you could eat it, that was Maresechal's plan. His elaborate , completely temporary installations of 'floor tiles' made up from 'everyday materials' being spices, food, soap. I would be kneeling the whole time sniffing and brushing the scent in my direction and it seriously smelt of my mother's spices and herb draws and cupboards. It was so nostalgic and that's what I took from it.

Laurent Maresechal, Beiti, 2012
Site specific installation, spices - variable dimensions
© Laurent Mareschal & Galerie Marie Cini, Paris

One half is uniformed, with a sprinkling of something dark that felt like footprints or some warm presence dusted over the tiles, the other side, deliberate or not I dunno has augmented tiles. A coupe shifted to the side, but I thnik what was SOO fucking fantastically fascinating was along the edge, a couple of fingerprints and swipes of the piece literally wiped away was apparent, and then I see one massive smudging, like the tile wiped with hands marked out! Now Maresechal use of deliberately fragile materials, which he expected viewers to eating or something, participating in the piece's fragile nature and transforming it. I think Maresechal could only of dreamt that a little boy would of gotten too close over the bar, falling onto the tiles! Absolutely makes it what it is, a temporary pattern of memory and culture, so much of Middle-Eastern and Arabic culture is in the vibrant colours and smells! Thought these tiles were stunning in everyway, I could go on and on.

Plastic Gold by Florie Salnot

But onto Florie Salnot! I ain't going to show you her jewellery because that isn't the thing about her, google it by all means, but her use of recycling, taking plastic and creating 'gold' through the process shown above, involving refugee camps in making pieces, being about both socializing and having craft. It is so true and honest yet innovative, I don't understand why this isn't happening more. Salnot is a beautiful example of art and design being about community.

Refugee Camp

Mounir Fatmi, Screenshot of multi-media Installation

Now we are back to Fatmi, who introduces the Jameel Prize 3 exhibition through multi-media installation, and inside you witness a MASSIVE like, it must of been like 10 metres wide, only slight exaggeration. Just elaborating on the point before, layering and distracting with writing, taking away all meaning and creating mechanical geometrics of nothingness.

And in the bottom right corner next to the LONG BIG blurb of special thanks are these wonderful carpets by Ahme, like seriously making them in the old fashion way but the image and pattern itself pulled, distorted, manipulated within a pixel of its life, finally. An arabic carpet that doesn't bore the life out of me.


Faig Ahme Carpet

Pearls

Until 19 Jan 2014
V&A and Qatar Museums Authority Exhibition
Book Tickets

Much talked about exhibition, I remember when it opened and the celebs that came blah blah everyone made a big deal about it. Was it any could? Did V&A make it more purposeful than a typical, hgih end bespoke jewellery store? Meh. It starts and ends great, the middle with a couple of highlights jsut fillers to impress audiences.


Portrait of Jeanne de Marigny,
C & H Beaubrun

Opens up to this portrait, a wealthy woman soaked in jewels and pearls, tossing her chains and rings and money casually on the floor. Left a bad taste in my mouth tbh. Then it leads into the science of pearls, the birth and cycle of it. Like did you know, pearls actually form through parasites being trapped when mollusc retracts in its shell, created as it is triggered by the intrusion of the parasite. It is basically the product of fucking shell rape. THAT IN ITSELF is just, fuck, omg. Costume ideaaaaaa


© Victoria and Albert Museum

And so it sets the theme of the exhibition is general, being presented in vintage cabinets, protected by I think like triple glazing like, the security and insurance I imagine much be insane for this. And there's a lesson about Pearl fishing inthe Persian/Arabian Gulf, pap pap Persia! Bahrain and Doha being at deep in the action! And you see a net basket which these divers hang around the neck and held on the chest, so as they're foraging the earth of the sea, they collect shells in their net baskets, going about their business. That effort and risk etc going into finding pearls, its rarity just being emphasized through this history lesson, and other Gulfs and places to farm pearls discovered by Spanish fishermen, and the difference between different pearls from different areas. So exciting to see, felt like one of the victorians discovering new things for the first time.

Pearl divers off the coast of Qatar,
photographed by Christian Creutz, 1972
(James Hanna/Qatar Museums Authority)

Then it gets all meh, literally I dunno why the peices shown was picked, what the criteria was. Whatever is impressive and related to royalties blahblah. Was was interested in the descriptions made about the evolution of the symbolism behind pearls through time. And seeing, not this one below but nonetheless, yo get to see a jewellery design drawing by Vasters. And pieces of the Art Nouveau, organic peices based on nature capitalising on the pearl's irregular and spontaneous shape and form, designs that totally embraced the personality of that single pearl used. Moving onto the Art Deco period, like this section of the cabinets is the best, the first half, read the descriptions instead of dismissing them. Trust me you'll gain so much more than staring at meh status pieces.

Personal fav: the 1900 DOG COLLAR. Maybe not a favourite but damn, seriously.

Aachen (about 1860), Reinhold Vasters 

After these cabinets, hello different ways pearls are used as a material and representation! Something great about this exhibition is that it doesn't just show pretty jewellery, it gives you an evolving point of view of pearls, the origins and then various types of interpretations made from them from a range of cultures and design ideas. Such as an Imperial Court Robe for China, or the insane Mnekin emboss, like the clothing literally being presented by creating a texture from pearls!

The Hope Pearl

Icon with Virgin and Child

Ivan Nikolaev Mnekin

Moscow, Russia

1886

Or the impressive, global superstars of the pearl world with 'The Hope Pearl' literally being crowned, of the 'Pearl of Asia', like these uniquely, grossly large alien pearls seen as celebrities! 

Unfortunately that celeb culture of pearl includes this one dipshit comment I heard. 

Joseph Chaumet Tiara

Like this tiara you see above, she pointed at the middle pearl and gasped in horror and disapproval 'why do they have to use such an ugly cut?!' and then moved onto something else exclaiming snobby and dickhead remarks. Like literally it was the equivalent of pointing at the different bikini bodies in magazines and circling around what is 'WRONG' about them. You fail to see the beauty in the individual that is so lost within materials used in art and design I feel at least, that materials are just used and seen in bulk and mass, not for each personal quality and showcasing it to its best. Like if you're ganna have shallow work give it SOME depth and beauty. Like I wanted to slap this prick.

Marilyn Monroe

The Flowers of the Fields of France, Norman
Worn by Queen Elizabeth II on state visit to Paris 1957

Detail

And you see pearls use as worn by celebrities Monroe and Taylor, only photographs sad to say, yes I am sorry to inform all tourists, but there are pieces leant by Her Majesty soooooo. And again the use of pearls and what it represented culturally is seen through 'The Flowers of the Fields of France' gown. 

Meh okay moving on cos it was great to see but didn't inspire me. And then V&A goes and inspires me - omg no so this exhibition totally has rise and fall! You amazed, you're meh, you're awed! you're bored. I get it now - with Mikimoto's CULTURED PEARLS. Yeah I know I didn't know pearls could be cultured themselves. But it is still influenced by us because these are pearls created by 'inserting an object' inside of the oyster and shell as the pearl is being formed. Great photographs are displayed to compare influenced pearls to the norm.

© Victoria and Albert Museum © Mikimoto

But there are a few pieces that are so exciting, probably because I am a Costume for Performance student and I saw pieces like the Gothic Choker having such energy and style that projects a style in itself, like you can be totally nude and wear this choker and get a sense of the character. And there is is one, like even I was impressed by its being, the Journey of 5000 pearl scarf. yeah. A PEARL SCARF WITH A FUCKING BADGE SAYING MIKIMOTO. Nothing gets more boss than that. I'm sorry no fuck off he wins. Contemporary pearls don't end here.

Gothic Choker
© Victoria and Albert Museum, © Mikimoto

Sam Tho Duong
© Victoria and Albert Museum

Sam Tho Duong's collection and one piece imparticular exploring nature being frozen is so inspired, and the spiders and so much more, unfortunately completely crammed onto one board. They showcase pearls in jewellery designs aren't dated or tacky thanks to the plastic pearl necklaces or 'pearl' sex toys, it is still going strong. But the real highlight of this exhibition is right at the end. I think a piece made by Weiwei, these eight buckets filled with almost mutated pearls varying in shades of white, it's titled 'Mass Production of China' because at the end we see how what started as humble pearl fishing, trading in honest materials, well that has evolved into a corrupt process of farming, like all farms, that to create massive amounts of pearls, abusing living creatures that are oysters and mollusc. I mean ffs. And the hollow, fading reflections of these buckets just emphasizing that mass, and the emptiness and shady business it is. 

Buckets of pearls at the V&A’s Pearls exhibition
(James Hanna/V&A/Qatar Museum’s Authority

And how I stood there for like 10 minutes whilst other viewers literally coming down the corridor heading straight for the exit and into the shop, made me sick. 

This exhibition was worth it because I had my student discount, but to my surprise and after writing this blog and sensing that rise and fall in pace through the exhibition, it is an impressively laid out and presented show. The navy, dark space with articulate lighting, making these small TINY pieces become  massive, lifesized. How they managed to achieve that effect, they went and earnt themselves a pearly white smile.