When I think about exhibiting my work in a gallery setting, typically that means having the artwork seen under a very specific set of conditions. White walls, high ceilings, track lighting. When I was making PACKED I assumed that it would be seen under those specific circumstances, and planned accordingly, adjusting the internal lights of each special house for best viewing under neutral florescent lights. Although that didn’t stop me from turning the lights off in my workspace and enjoying the glow from PACKED’s softly lit windows from time to time. But sometimes a gallery can surprise you, and sometimes my own art surprises me. That’s what happened last week when gallery staff shared how special PACKED looked at night, with soft streetlight coming in through the floor to ceiling windows of the gallery and the track lighting turned low for the night.
It’s really something wonderful. As the sky darkens into evening, details of the architecture begin to fade and the lights within PACKED brighten and seem to leap forward and beg for inspection. I hadn’t intended for PACKED to be seen this way, it is a result of circumstance rather than planning, and probably all the more beautiful because of it.