What do you see when you look at clouds?
Interpreting the artistic merits of the vaulting whiteness above us is an activity that comes naturally to humans.
The Polygon Gallery’s current exhibition, Cloud Album, takes those instinctual daydreams of being a kid, spotting animals in the sky, and beautifully opens the tradition into the realm of high (NOT writing “literally” here) art.
Through 250 works of photography, painting, video and diagrams, this sprawling show reminds us that marvelling at the sky isn’t something we age out of. Curators Luce Lebart and Timothy Prus present this collection with a sense of whimsy and curiosity even though they’ve both been accumulating images of clouds/writing about them for decades now.
The collaboration came together in the last 2.5 years, and although well-versed in the subject, both contributors don’t present themselves as experts by any means. There’s a humbling sense of awe in the artist’s tone that lends itself wonderfully to the show. The concept of documenting something that is in constant motion might sound counter-intuitive, but therein lies the show’s beauty. As Prus puts it, “It’s always useful to remember that clouds are water, and water isn’t fixed like a rock or a plant. So it’s very hard to catalogue.”
Despite the whimsical quality of the show, there is a also darker side to the exhibition in the form of manmade clouds. Billowing mushrooms on the horizon, the lingering smoke from explosions- it may seem like a stark contrast, but they also provide an interesting duality. We openly acknowledge the beauty of natural clouds, but if an explosion takes the same shape and characteristics, does it still contain the same meaning? Without commenting on it directly, the images of war in the show are particularly resonant with the current state of the world. It’s easy to draw a line between children lost in thought while observing natural clouds to be then interrupted by the reality of the artificial ones.
These images also play into the subtle theme of mortality of Cloud Album. We’ve all seen the sped-up video footage of a stationary subject accompanied by fast-forwarded clouds, whipping around the sky. As if we’re watching a smear of moments as the present races by. This sensation is shown during a piece recorded by Japanese physicist and meteorologist, Masanao Abe. As a black and white video shows Mount Fuji in the distance clouds swirl around in footage that was compiled over a span of over 15 years.
Despite how landscapes and perspectives change across the world and throughout time, the dotting of clouds across the sky is one of nature’s timeless scenes. In this sense, it’s easy to imagine the included paintings of John Constable (which are dated in the 1820s) being created even this week.
Maybe I’m imposing my own interpretations onto the show that the curators didn’t mean, but really, isn’t that what staring at clouds is all about?
Cloud Album runs until May 1
For more information, visit: thepolygon.ca
*Cover photo by Dennis Ha
