By Victoria Shuman
If one is into or just a bit curious about visually appealing tapestry-like designs, Margi Weirs work offers that and a deeper look into the world we live in. Walking into her Bearing Witness: Installations exhibit, the placement of the artwork in the open room pulls the viewer in with the bright exciting colors and structure of her designs. Her art has a twist that gets more interesting the longer the viewer examines the almost monochromatic design. The longer I stare at the designs, things start to connect, her work becomes more than just shapes, words, and colors dancing around one another. Rather, it contains characters from movies, figures from everyday life, and deep conversations that people tend to avoid. The execution of her pieces is very unique and like nothing I have seen before. There are some pieces that are displayed directly on the walls like stickers either around projected prints or by themselves helping to complete the story or making one of its own. I find the artist attempting to sway an idea in front of the viewer’s faces and let them preserve what they may.
When discussing her work Weirs states that it is, “something beautiful on the surface has an underlying violence, dark side, if you will, I find this present in many of the works displayed. One piece in particular comes to mind, titled, Yellow Journalism, its bright yellow colors that are normally associated with ideas of happiness. Bringing the viewer in with a familiar face, the lion from Wizard of Oz. There are more yellow objects such as caution signs, bananas, submarines, silhouettes of a dog and yellow birds; such things bring a sense of lighthearted playfulness to the piece. Also present in this piece is the title which she puts in the yellow banner that surrounds the work, resembling caution tape. Without knowing which movie the lion comes from, I fear the whole concept she’s trying to make the viewer see would be lost, but Weir must have had that exact thought while creating not only this design but all of them. To think that far ahead, to consider the reactions and thoughts of her audience. Choosing a character that is so well known for being a coward helps explain her concept on how she portrays journalists. An unspoken message, calling the cowards hiding behind their yellow tape as they gossip like chirping birds. It is the concept I thought she was hinting at, but it may be different for others, again the viewer is in charge of what he or she perceives.
Her work is not something a person can understand with a glance. At first I feared people would get lost in the design and the beautiful judgments of symmetry in some pieces, but Weir’s placement of features makes people question why it is there, what it could mean. She states that her work is meant to spark conversation on “ecology and/or social political realities of the contemporary world around us”. I find this statement to come into play with her work titled White Privilege, with a solid black background and white objects. The biggest is the White House followed by king chess pieces, white bread, a white picket fence, and white clothes hanging on a clothesline. Featuring the White House and white picket fence undeniably corresponds with America and the common “American Dream”. In the middle of the artwork the words, “whitewashed”are displayed.
There are very different emotions, arguments, and discussions that this piece has started on what this artwork actually stands for. Whether people agree with her view or not, she is hinting at the way America is whitewashed, imposing that white is superior in our society. Although like the previous work, the title is present in the work, White Privilege is huge among the bottom of the piece of art. Along with other text, which I feel is crucial in her work to not only engage the audience but help them see her point further. I find this to help with understanding the clothes line in the design. Without the text I would not be sure that her work, personal opinion on the subject, or the questions and conversations she is hoping for would be understood by the audience. I find the commentary on the works brilliant, because she has found a way to have a debate about her work with the audience. While being able to move the viewer without being there physically to push or explain the reason to have the conversation.
Similarly, in her piece titled Evergreen, she uses the same style with the words, yet the design does not give me anger or shock or even a complete understanding until the design is fully studied. This topic is not being discussed with such a serious outlook like sexism or oppression that is a prominent conversation nowadays. The topic of the piece is climate change and our effect on the world. Unlike others, it is overlooked because of the time that passes before anyone sees what impact a person’s actions have on the environment is not a concept that’s always in one’s face. Again, Weir uses a color that is excellent, a vibrant green to demonstrate the figures in the piece. At first glance the green overwhelms the vision with the recycling symbol, flowers, vines, and what appears to be a weed plant surrounding the piece.
Although the longer one stares at it the oil drills under the flowers it becomes the main focus. Realizing this the eyes move around the print trying to pick up what else they could have overlooked. The more one looks the less joyful the art feels and a more serious feeling overwhelms the mind. With the money being a green that seems like it belongs, the viewer is blind to what is happening. Until they were not, once I realized the money was right there, hidden in plain sight. Once the money is spotted at the bottom it draws many questions as to why it is there. This fuels a deeper conversation on how money fits into an art piece about the environment. Could it have been hinting at the fact that money is a huge part of covering up the effects we have on the environment? Unlike the oil drills that are an ice blue making a point these things are disrupting nature, in the piece and the world we live in. With them being present it shows Weir was hinting at the possibility we only blame big companies for the environment. Instead money is influencing the whole piece. She uses the word “Deepwater Horizon” which was a disaster involving a huge oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Which could have been avoided if it was not for the greed for fossil fuels. By using those words in this piece, her art does exactly what she said it would, showing a dark side, and connecting it to a real event that has happened. This piece is very focused on raising all the right questions needed to make a change and shine light on things we overlook everyday. Weir has created an amazing concept that is best described as a venus fly trap. What I mean by this is that Weirs work lure people in and holds their attention.