i was super bored this weekend so to get my brain working a bit i decided to go to casino luxembourg. there's been an exhibition on for awhile now entitled 'ceci n'est pas un casino' (this is not a casino), because of course you'd think it was one by the name. the theme is basically fun and games, but with the element of frustration attached to gambling. frustrating or not, it was a really fun and funny set of works, the type of exhibition to go with a friend or two just to share in laughing or playing. i think i'll go again with one, especially to take some photos.
the first thing you see when you walk into the gallery is jacob dahlgren's massive wall of dartboards, complete with a little box on the floor filled with darts. looking at all of the bad shots on the boards, your first urge is to pick up a dart and try for the bull's-eye yourself. i think i got pretty close on my fourth try!
also on the main floor is a room containing antoinette j. citizen's 'landscape', one of my favourite works. it is a room painted to look just like super mario world, from the old nintendo system. very cute and very fun, with light-up question-mark boxes.
there were a few other works related to video game consoles, like walter langelaar's 'nOtbOt', which shows a joystick moving by itself to navigate through a game of quake. the joystick is controlled by artificial intelligence software to go through random movements, and yet it still manages to move through the game pretty successfully.
there was also this myterious piece that took a beat-up old pool table and added some magic...
two interesting sets of photos by hermine bourgadier capture the faces of those involved in the world of gambling and competition, from a very interesting viewpoint. the first is 'street fighters' which is a row of photographs depicting young men's faces focused intensely or sometime placidly on something in front of them. it turns out they are all competing in a street fighter (arcade game) competition, something that used to exist in the 80s.
the next set gives a glimpse into the world of race betting. different groups of people stand in a hall littered with paper, intently watching a screen that the viewer can't see. it is broadcasting the horse race they've bet on, and each person's reaction is different, sometimes disappointment, sometimes excitement. what's interesting is that the photos never show the outcome of the race, only the tension felt during it.
the last piece i'll mention may sum up the whole show. it is patrick bérubé's 'demi-mesure', a large trampoline placed in a room with a ceiling much too low to allow any jumping. it allows play and viewer interaction, but also the great frustration of a trampoline you can't jump on!
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