Tubular Welds

We (I say presumptuously on behalf of those who take a keen interest in contemporary art) expect to be surprised, not see the same thing over and over. Yet sometimes we go to an exhibition by a particular artist precisely because we dimly expect to get the same thrill we got last time we saw their work. I confess to being disappointed at the first sight of Yona Lee’s new show at the Dunedin Public Art Gallery (DPAG), an outcome of the Visiting Artist Programme the gallery runs in conjunction with the Dunedin School of Art. I knew, and liked, her previous work, such as the In Transit (Arrival) installation she put together for Te Tuhi in 2017, and looked forward to the arrival of a similar and new manifestation of the concept: the gallery space articulated by lengths of tubular steel; a skeletal architecture within the architecture; sparsely furnished with bits and bobs evocative of various private and public environments; sprawling, extensive, immersive, complex, brutal, composed, excessive and spectacular.

instead appeared to be a less than natural successor―frankly, unsuccessful. In such a conspicuously large square space, the little sculptures, regularly of the small sculptures than of the big ones (more on that in a moment), which makes me all the more excited to see what she does next (the next expectation/fulfilment conundrum). For now, I can reflect on what she has done so far.