Marko M盲etamm, Self-Portrait in the Cage, 2015, cast plastic figure, hair, clothes, and birdcage; 33 1/8 x 17 1/2 x 27 3/8 in. (84.1 x 44.5 x 69.5 cm). Image courtesy of Marko M盲etamm and Temnikova & Kasela Gallery.
Estonian multimedia artist Marko M盲etamm tells stories, both personal and global, in the exhibition I Want to Tell You Something, opening this Thursday at the .
The exhibition features paintings, drawings, sculptures, ceramics, and video installations through which M盲etamm communicates with viewers about his life, his problems, and the world around him.
鈥淔or me, making art is always about saying something, or at least provoking communication or dialogue,鈥 said M盲etamm, who is the 2016 Christian A. Johnson artist-in-residence. 鈥淚f I don鈥檛 have anything to say, then I don鈥檛 see why I should paint, or why I should do anything.鈥
Many of the works in the exhibition are intended to provoke conversation about everyday life and cultural issues. The installation titled Bookshelf appears to be a room covered with books, but inside is the video Just Checking if There鈥檚 Something New, which shows a man continuously checking his smartphone.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know if it鈥檚 good or bad,鈥 said M盲etamm, reflecting on social media and texting as new forms of communication, 鈥渂ut it鈥檚 different now, and it鈥檚 exciting, and that is what interests me: observing it.鈥
In preparation for the exhibition, Katie Jean Colman 鈥18 assisted the Picker Art Gallery staff as a summer intern. She wrote an essay for the exhibition catalogue, organized a student event, and started a project with Estonian fashion designer Reet Aus that will provide sustainably sourced T-shirts to complement M盲etamm鈥檚 exhibition.
鈥淭here is so much that goes into planning and executing an exhibition that I had never thought of until this summer,鈥 said Colman, who is an major. 鈥淚 did all sorts of work during my internship, from curation to collections management. Each day presented something new.鈥
Colman and other student interns will give remarks and lead mini-tours at the exhibition鈥檚 opening reception Thursday at 5 p.m.
Internships at the Picker Art Gallery satisfy the internship requirement of the museum studies minor, a new interdisciplinary program that focuses on cultural property, public history, and museum theory.
In addition to the exhibition at the Picker, a complementary exhibition of M盲etamm鈥檚 video art, called Something Moving, is on display at the until October 2.
M盲etamm is also teaching an advanced studio art course, presenting a lecture, and completing a project with the during his four-month residency at 含羞草研究所.