ism vs hism

here is a disclaimer: i am about to discuss my thoughts on modern and contemporary art. a lot of these ideas stem from our trip to the pompidou today, so not all are decidedly positive. feel free to argue with me, but don't just dismiss my frustration as ignorant.

so, the pompidou. two levels were open: the 3rd floor (contemporary art) and the 4th (modern art.) the third floor was, in my mind, a little self-indulgent. i like some contemporary art- for example, i adore tara donovan.  (She had an exhibit at the ICA a couple of months ago... soooo cool! here are some pictures of her work if you're interested. be sure to make note of the materials she uses. http://www.acegallery.net/artistmenu.php?Artist=8)

but these! ahh... after our visit we realized we should've gone to the 4th floor first instead of expending our energy looking at voids.

anyway, i didn't take any pictures on the 4th floor, but i saw a couple of matisse charcoal sketches and paintings that i loved.

here are some photos of the 3rd floor works which i found the most dubious.

possibly our favourite exhibit was titled 'Voids: A Retrospective.' it consisted of nine empty rooms all 'created' by different artists. 

alex can't believe you can take a guided tour of these rooms. 

lauren explores the infinite void.

i couldn't tell if this was an exhibit or not...

apparently it wasn't. but this is! see the difference?

this is not from our apartment. maybe next time.