Fourteenth International Conference on The Image

Abstract

I present a practice-based enquiry, investigating the display of visual art in the home. Through a series of photographs and accompanying paper I will articulate my findings on the culture of display, with specific reference to the display of artwork within the home. The work explores the relationship between the owner, artwork and the domestic space, and the decisions made by owners when displaying art within their home. I consider the wider cultural meanings that can be revealed by interrogating the owner’s relationship with a piece of art through concepts such as taste, design and most significantly, identity. I propose that the display of the chosen artwork within the domestic space, in tandem with the viewing of this artwork, is an act of self-reflection where the artwork is embedded within the minutiae of the material culture in the home, bringing a new reading to the artwork itself. The primary themes explored throughout my research ask: how are artworks, specifically paintings, displayed within domestic homes? How do those displays inform and impact the owners’ everyday lives? By conducting interviews with participants, I was able to further investigate the impact of the surrounding material culture on the viewing experience and on identity more widely. I present viewers with representations of aspects of the owner’s personal identity as presented to the world through material culture and consequently the display of the owner’s cultural capital. Viewing artwork amidst their everyday material life is a reinforcement of the owner’s identity as culturally engaged.

Presenters

Sarah Mc Adam
Dean of the School of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Plymouth Marjon University, Devon, United Kingdom