The Saatchi Gallery, more so than most other museums we have visited, allowed visitors to engage with the artwork from multiple perspectives. This was most evident in the "Up" and "Down" pieces that our tour guide first pointed out. Because these pieces were centrally located in the gallery, we were able to observe them from every angle, which made them more impressive because we saw every footprint, etc. within the clay. Had these been in a corner or on a wall, we would not have gotten the same expereince. I really appreciate this type of gallery design, especially because there were so many three-dimensional pieces like these in the Saatchi Gallery. Arranging the pieces so that the museum visitors can view them from multiple perspectives gives greater deference to the pieces themselves. In other museums we have visited, especially the Tate Modern, certain exhibits have allowed for similar multiple sightlines, but this was most pronounced in the Saatchi.
Didactics
As someone who is an art "outsider," it often frustrates me when text descriptions of a piece are lacking. Usually, if I see an unusual, confusing piece, I immediately consult the title and artist description in search of explanation. However, after listening to our tour guide describe the inhibiting/constraining effective of text, I see the relationship between art and didactics a bit differently. I appreciated her point that the more text there is describing the piece, the more that contributes to a static meaning of a piece, which is usually not the aim of the artist; rather, minimalistic text allows visitors to interpret the artwork on their own, even if that means a frustrating initial experience, as I witnessed.
Collection
The Saatchi Gallery was certainly the most unconventional museum we have visited during our course. Even in comparison to the pieces in the Tate Modern, the artwork at the Saatchi is pretty out there. The building itself has a beautiful interior, and I often felt that some of the pieces didn't belong is such a bright, pristine building off of Sloane Square. I appreciated certain pieces individually, but others frustrated and/or frightened me. Specifically, two pieces on the ground floor did not sit well with me. The first was the taxidermic goat intertwined with a Dior perfume bottle. I will never see my Dior perfume bottle the same again after this experience. The other piece that disconcerted me was the sort of horse structure with blue plastic and a fur coat draped over it. These were the last two pieces I saw before leaving the gallery, which probably contributed negatively to my overall interpretation of the collection. In retrospect, I can appreciate the Saatchi Gallery for being the most adventurous collection we have visited, although I'm not sure how frequently I would return in the future.
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