Gallery space is a really interesting aspect of a gallery where it can change the environment of a piece of art and how the viewer processes the art. During our gallery walk, my group visited numerous galleries including the Kim Foster Gallery, the ACA Galleries, the Skoto Gallery, the Deborah Zlotsky now and later, and the Sato Sakura Gallery. The two pieces of art I have chosen to examine are from the Kim Foster Gallery and the Sato Sakura Gallery. 529 W 20thSt was where the Kim Foster Gallery was located and 501 W 20thSt was where the Sato Sakura Gallery was located.

The Kim Foster Gallery was a “White Cube.” There were no windows, the walls were painted white, and the only thing that looked different from the rest was the brown desk in the corner. The paintings were scattered around the room and the room seemed almost empty. It can be seen in the pictures above that there were no more than one or two paintings per wall. The background of the paintings is white, almost as if they’re trying to blend in with their white surroundings, but their random strokes of color is not allowing them to. This is almost supposed to symbolize the spectator. The spectator in this case is an intrusion to this “white cube” disturbing the natural occurrence of its surroundings. The gallery is naturally empty, but your space occupying body is disturbing this emptiness. The paintings and gallery space are almost trying to show the spectator what role they play in this specific environment.

The artist of these paintings is Kim Foster, but the names of the paintings were not mentioned. I also think that the random strokes of color, letters, and hues on these paintings really stand out to the spectator in a white environment. When I walked in, I felt out of place and lost. However, the letters and clouds of color on these works of art almost lure you in and make you stand there continuously reminding you of the fact that you’re disturbing the natural environment even though you cannot help it.

The Sato Sakura Gallery was the complete opposite of the Kim Foster Gallery. This gallery was very colorful and as soon as you enter, crystals greet you, like the one I have attached above. The walls were painted in dark and light colors, where the different hues were very intriguing to see as you walked around. Paintings hung from the ceiling, there were chairs and tables for you to sit down, and the colors of these paintings were very aesthetically pleasing. The painting I have chosen is by Yoichi Nishino and depicts an elephant family in the forest. The wall behind this painting was black or a very dark color, and the bottom of this painting perfectly blends in with the wall. This is again supposed to symbolize the role of the spectator, and in this case, the spectator is welcomed, blends in with the surroundings, and does not feel like a space occupying body because the gallery is already very occupied.

Overall, gallery space can affect the viewer’s experience in many ways. In the first gallery, the empty, white surroundings, made the spectator almost feel unwelcome where the only thing luring you in was the randomness of the artwork. In the second gallery, the viewer felt greeted and welcomed where the colors, crystals, and chairs captivated your attention.