Christian Marclay's 'The Clock' is as revered for the meticulous work that enabled its creation as its capacity to mesmerise. In many ways, it's the seminal artwork of the era, a staggering exercise in 'appropriation', at its heart a series of very modern traits - 1) the editing of digital material in search of new meanings, 2) a nostalgia for Pop Culture and Cinema's history, and 3) the indulgence of past images in preference to shaping visions of the future. But perhaps more vitally than any of this, 'The Clock' challenges the management of our personal time by demanding that we stop. The inevitable reaction to this demand is resistance. Surely it's madness to think anyone has enough spare time to properly experience 'The Clock' in its full 24hour glory? After all, it's only art, and we get the gist after ten minutes from a cursory glance. What else would we be missing out on if we chose to indulge 'The Clock'? And because of this train of thought, the inertia that characterises modern life refuses to relent. We are exposed as hunters in search of what we can see and do next, disinterested in what we have the opportunity to do now. We are revealed to be in a constant rush, never properly engaging with the moment we inhabit. 'The Clock' urges us to stop, to give ourselves to the here and now - and yet we still cannot do it. Why? Because we feel we no longer have the time.
Christian Marclay's 'The Clock' is currently showing at the Hayward Gallery London.
4 comments:
Interesting. I'm quite curious to see this piece, but I fear I'd be restless within minutes...
Did you stop?
Well, I get restless anyway in galleries usually, largely to do with their public nature. I find fighting to see pictures so frustrating, and I'm now of an age where if I fail to make a connection to the work I'm happy to move on knowing the stuff I need will be retained.
That said, The Clock did indeed present a huge challenge to my natural inertia. I lasted about 20 mins.
As such I yearn to have a collection of Marclay's work on DVD actually. The piece felt conducive to a domestic environment. It'd be a great piece for a hotel lobby too.
That makes a lot of sense. A hotel lobby would be curiously fitting, though a bit avant garde for most hotels, and a home version would be absolutely spot on.
No idea when, or indeed if, I'll get to see it.
- No idea when, or indeed if, I'll get to see it.
I increasingly have this feeling about most things life can offer.
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