Nearly five decades ago, a talented young artist named John Smith embarked on a unique project in Dalston, London. Armed with his camera, Smith took to the streets to capture the daily lives of ordinary people. However, instead of merely documenting reality, he cleverly staged and orchestrated the scenes to construct a powerful artistic narrative. As the monochrome footage plays, Smith can be heard directing his subjects like a film director, adding an amusing and thought-provoking layer to his work.
This thought-provoking exhibition is a bold and exciting debut by the Whitechapel Gallery’s new director, Gilane Tawadros. It challenges the audience to ponder the distinction between art and life, if such a distinction even exists. While this question is not novel, it is posed in a daring and innovative manner that transcends banality and brings forth poetic contemplation.
At the heart of this exhibition is Smith’s seminal 1976 conceptual art piece, “The Girl Chewing Gum.” This British punk interpretation of French New Wave cinema blurs the boundaries between art and reality, suggesting that art is indeed life and nothing more. The mock directorial voice becomes increasingly unhinged, weaving a tale where a passerby in a raincoat has just committed a bank robbery and conceals a gun in his pocket. The cinema-goers, upon noticing the camera, become curious, amused, and self-aware. It’s a moment of truth that goes beyond fabrication and resonates with viewers.
Much of the exhibition directly mirrors the urban reality outside its walls through unfiltered images of contemporary British life. Drawing inspiration from Smith’s approach, Mitra Tabrizian’s “Film Stills” presents seemingly chaotic and random photographs of lockups and parked cars, challenging viewers to find a narrative amidst the apparent disorder. However, this exhibition’s true depth lies in its introspective quality, highlighting how our memories and desires brush against one another as we pass each other by, leaving ghostly impressions behind. Alia Syed’s “Fatima’s Letter” explores this border between outer existence and inner consciousness, incorporating fleeting monochromatic images of platforms and trains with fragmented memories of migration and lost connections.
The exhibition reaches its transcendental zenith with the inclusion of a contemporary art classic. Mark Wallinger’s “Threshold to the Kingdom” may be familiar to some, but experiencing it again evokes a profound sense of astonishment at the simplicity of the idea and its profound impact. Wallinger positions his camera at the arrivals gate of an airport, capturing people in slow motion as they emerge. Their smiles, embraces with waiting loved ones, expressions of anxiety or solitude, and confident strides are portrayed life-size, approaching viewers directly. The majestic melodies of Allegri’s “Miserere” provide an ethereal backdrop. It’s akin to witnessing an entrance into heaven, a scene reminiscent of a Last Judgment altarpiece or a canto penned by Dante. These poetic moments are extracted from entirely genuine and ordinary moments of modern life, powerfully reinforcing the exhibition’s central thesis: art is simply a different way of observing life.
While many exceptional works are showcased, the true revelation of this exhibition is the radical veteran, John Smith. In 2020, Smith commenced a new project, capturing footage from his window overlooking Hackney, London. The opening shot is shrouded in mist and snow, revealing only a blank expanse above the houses. As the haze dissipates, the towering glass structures of the City emerge, accompanied by Boris Johnson’s dismissive remarks about the coronavirus in the early weeks of that year. Over time, Johnson’s tone becomes increasingly alarmed. Smith continues filming, surreptitiously observing his neighbors navigating their homes during lockdown while the government at Downing Street revels in festivities.
This glimpse into Smith’s latest endeavor feels almost too real. Often, art serves as an escape or a means of sublimating the complexities of life, much like Smith’s early film where he assumed the role of a director. However, this exhibition poses the intriguing question of what it would be like if art mirrored reality as honestly and unfiltered as a chewed piece of gum stuck to asphalt. The answer is refreshing and invigorating.
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