From where I'm standing - Museums Association

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From where I’m standing

I didn't know the Royal Academy had so much to offer me
Felicity Heywood
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I’m loving the Royal Academy’s (RA) new contemporary show Aware (until 30 January), which uses fashion to draw out some very serious issues around identity.

This was only my second visit to the RA, and the first was many years ago. I had presumed that the RA had nothing for me. Perhaps this is unfair, but it suffers from being in an area that is already noted for its exclusivity, with the RA at the top of any institutional hegemony that may exist. (Working with schools from all over London and further afield could help to break this.)

But what this third season of contemporary art at the Royal Academy shows is that institutions can and are evolving – and, in this show at least, they are doing it with provocation and flair. The exhibition is divided into four sections; the penultimate one – Belonging and Confronting – resonated the most.

The standout piece is Chic Point by the Palestinian artist Sharif Waked. The film features a catwalk with models in what look to be high fashion but with panels, zips, hoods and netting utilised to expose flesh usually around the midriff and chest area.

It is shot in extremely low light, and the longer I looked at the clothes with pieces missing here and there, a sinister feeling came creeping over me. And that was before I saw the next part.

Fashion show over, the film moves to reallife Israeli checkpoints where Palestinian men lift their clothing at gunpoint to reveal their bare torsos to prove they are unarmed.

This for me was a powerful use of art to show the everyday reality for two “nations” trying to exist side by side. Considering Chic Point was made in 2003, it is sad that it is still so relevant today.

Two works have been commissioned especially for the exhibition. One by Hussein Chalayan is outstanding. The artist has an interest in culture clashes and he uses a model in couture and Japanese theatre characters to depict the manipulation of puppet by the puppeteers – a stunning piece. I am looking forward to my next visit – this time to the main RA galleries.


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