I was originally drawn to go to this gallery because of it's heavily advertised and rather disappointingly small exhibition considering changing attitudes to female body shape within art and design. I feel this could have been further pushed, however It was a collaborative show with the arts collage here so there is merit to be had there.
Still, silver linings. I very much benefitted from visiting the 'Ponte City' exhibit, an installation presenting two artists study into a socially and structurally troubled high-rise housing complex in Johannesburg.
Here are some notes I made touring (for personal recollection)
Ponte city - recording location one place
Repeated views
Many windows
Many lift encounters
The beauty in repetition - studying people
Presentation thought - long table of books like zines - images words. One big box with picture of skyrise. Layers of paper like the layers of floors
'Visual essays'
Use of photography as powerful medium
I really enjoyed the spatial presence of this exhibit, bits of photographs and collage were strewn across the room. It wasn't like each item was separate, they all merged into one, meaning their presence was greater. The one tying elegant example of coherent structure came in the form of the series of visual essays (each an A5 booklet, placed in sequence out on a long white table). I feel the presence of these well formatted items enhanced the fine art surrounding it, and vice versa. It all brought the focus back to the fact that this is an important social study, whether conducted by sociologist or artist.
Also lunch was very satisfying, and the neo-gothic building is a beautiful thing (as most Edinburgh buildings seem to be!).
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