Simon Risi at Unanimous Consent / Zurich

Simon Risi / Ein ganz normaler Tag

24 February – 23 March 2024

Unanimous Consent
Elias-Canetti-Strasse 7
8050 Zurich
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Photo credits: Philip Ullrich

 
Exhibition Text:
 
Picture 01-03
 
The work “Durchschnittsfarben aller Kunstgalerien-Websiten dieser Welt (Ausgabe auf sternförmig angeordneten Druckern der Marke Xerox)” (Average colors of all art gallery websites in the world (output on star-shaped printers by the brand Xerox)) contains a python-script, that calls up websites of galleries worldwide, creates a screenshot on the respective website, calculates the average color and prints it out automatically.
 
Picture 04-07
 
“Future Perfect”, consisting of four “columns” with six image elevations each. These show an extract from a total of 27 different color-coded categories of emotions, the percentages of these vary per image survey.
 
Picture 08-14
 
How confusing it must be. Just an average day. Every day informs the average of all days, doesn’t it. Every day: all the feelings, so much input, no filter.
 
Do you think breaking it down makes it easier to comprehend? Let us stick to statistic, averages, simplifications, shall-we? This might just make it easier for us to relate to and with each other.

it seems like many lives are a constant interface with out computing machines. After having looked at pretty much the entire internet, how to compute this immense amount of data? How can I make you relate to my feelings on just this normal day? Or any nomral day? Or any day adding to what averages out to a normal day? How can I convey what I saw, how it feld and why its significant – or not?
 
Simon risi guides us through the confusion of just one normal, average day. When commercial galleries and the art fairs they participate in, assume the role of relevant cultural developers – why not see what they have to offer? Checking websites of all galleries presenting at the most reported on commercial art fair – a place focused on trade – Simon Risi figures out how to summarize what we have been seeing. While we are sitting at our desks at work or wherever and the printers are humming next tot us, we are constantly being fed with what might be the visual essence of what we describe as art or culture – the colors are pretty nice aren’t they? And just cruising online is affordable too!
While Simon Risi reduces the complexity of “culture” and “visual arts” he seems to be feeling so many things. While looking at all of these images, an impossible combination of emotions runs through him. In order to understnad, we must simplify. 7% entrancement: I know exactly what you mean! 17% anxiety? I can relate! 27% relief? I’m only at 22%.
Messing with norms, the ideas of reduction, simplification, communication and the economies of culture, Simon Risi guides us through just a normal day and the impossibilities and imperfections we encounter and produce when we try to communicate our relationships to them. 14% awe, 18% surprise, 21% fear.