The ASU Art Museum also hosted the U.S. premiere of the exhibition from March 16 through June 16, 1996
In 1995, the ASU Art Museum was honored to have presented this exhibition at the one-hundredth anniversary of the Venice Biennale. The Biennale has been described as the Olympics of the art world and features exhibitions of work by artists from over sixty countries.
Marilyn Zeitlin, the director of the ASU Art Museum, was chosen to be the Commissioner of the U.S. Pavilion and she, in turn, selected the internationally-renowned video artist Bill Viola.
One of the world’s best known and highly regarded artists working in video, Bill Viola makes installations that are hauntingly beautiful. He is known for his use of new technology to create works of profound vision and lucidity of expression. Viola uses video to create art which explores human emotions and the basic questions facing human life.
The five new installations that form Buried Secrets describe a journey or movement, both physical and conceptual, through interrelated themes of life/death, darkness/light, body/soul, internal/external and past/present.
Buried Secrets represented a tremendous jump in scale for the small, Tempe-based institution. To install the exhibition in the Nelson Fine Arts Center significant alterations were done. Four discrete, light-controlled spaces were required so that Viola’s installations have the appropriate effect on the viewer. Rather than passively viewing a painting on a wall, the installations are designed to have a visceral impact, surrounding the viewer with sound, projections and sometimes darkness.
This program culminated in the U.S. Premiere on March 9, 1996. The show was open for viewing during normal museum hours through June 9, 1996. There were other related events also scheduled as part of the exhibition. After the U.S. premiere at the ASU Art Museum, the show will travel to Boston and Denmark.
Images and descriptions of the five installations from the Venice premiere at the U.S. Pavilion are presented here.
The museum would like to acknowledge the support provided by the funders of this exhibition.
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