The Surreal House, curates by Carmody Groark, is being exhibited from 10th of June to 10th of September at the Barbican. The show focuses on “Surrealism”, mapping a mysterious labyrinth into two floors and uses different types of art works including visual and audio effects to promote art.
In the lower level, eight different subjects are displayed in different rooms, using black, gray and white with stones or cement to decorate the partitions to match the art. Interestingly, I also noticed that they open some windows on walls with different heights and skillfully use light through them so that the shadow blend into the spaces and become one part of artifacts. To be honest, they did really well. I feel scared, uncomfortable and a little bit suffocated while walking around it. The Wezen’s body sculpture, Dali’s “La Reine Salome’s” and films shown coexisting with the music played from the piano created an even more frightening atmosphere. My favorite exhibit is the "Fucking Mouse"; the artist cleverly projected the shadow of a metal sculpture, while the shadow looks just like two mice mating, the original sculpture looks no more than ordinary scrap metals. It occurs to me that the thing you see may not be realistic; the illusion further enforced the surrealism of the exhibition.
Climbing to the upper level and looking down, the overview of the lower level displayed as a labyrinth and you can see all of the rooms where display art works are actually set in a house, it stirs my heart up; once again, I admire Carmody Groark’s ingenuity. However, the exhibition up stairs doesn’t seem as exciting as down stairs. Not only the artifacts but also the rooms are humdrum and linearly displayed on both sides. I saw some strange building models, films and paintings just be put in those normal spaces ordinarily; slightly disappointed, they didn’t let me feel surreal.
Despite these drawbacks, I can undoubtedly say that The Surreal House is quite an exciting exhibition to those who expected a mystery and an enchanting gallery. Moreover, for someone who is looking for an unequivocal show, it would be a good choice. There is one thing I have to say that the air conditioning in gallery is overwhelmingly cold, it may be one of the main reason that I can always feel “the chill” when I immersed myself in that surrealistic environment.
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