Two exhibitions of note here in town: the first, which I saw this morning with Kari and a colleague, is Shakespearean “Fakes, Forgeries, and Facsimilies” at the Folger. It’s small, only a dozen cases, but it amounts to a crash course in methods of document examination. Traffic through the exhibition has apparently been high, which is not surprising; in my experience lay-people who would snooze over a narrotological reading of Abasalom, Absalom (I can say that because I once did one of those) light up when hearing about variants, versions, forgeries, and the like. More than most literary sub-specialties, textual studies could really have a popular audience.
The second, which is on our list to check out, is J. Seward Johnson’s show at the Corcoran. Seward Johnson does life-size dioramas of famous Impressionist canvases. The idea is that you can walk “through” the frame and experience the subject in three dimensions. A so-called sweet spot for each piece shows where to stand to view the two-dimensional picture plane. If you’re thinking that’s a neat idea, I’ll let you know after I go; if you’re thinking that sounds a lot like Madame Tussaud’s, well, that’s pretty much the opinion of a scathing review in the Washington Post. I suppose the idea appeals to me because it has the feel of a remix or interpolation or extrusion—the digital plastique.
Posted by mgk at September 13, 2003 05:03 PM