monmouth arts | x.it fall 2017 edition
BY DANIELLE ACERRA Earlier this summer, on July 3rd and 4th, Monmouth Arts debuted its first live interactive public art experience at Convention Hall on the boardwalk in Asbury Park. Artist Gerda Liebmann spent 26 hours creating a circular, biomorphic installation on the floor of Convention Hall—made entirely out of one continuous line of salt, spanning a diameter of 35 feet. Nearly 1,000 passersby stopped to watch and ask questions over the two days as Gerda methodically drew an organic, lace-like pattern of white salt on the floor using a plastic squeeze bottle. When Gerda could pause to refill or take a break, she would walk over to the crowd to speak with them. As she silently worked, people were transfixed, watching her with intent and curiosity. When Gerda and the Monmouth Arts’ team explained to the crowd that they were all invited to participate in the erasure of the art by walking over it at the end of the second day, some gasped in disbelief! They looked horrified. “I couldn’t do that!” or “No! After all that work, and that’s it?” Some immediately got really excited about the prospect of being allowed to walk over the intricate salt pattern—about being able to be a part of the art. Some, after thinking about it for a moment, found solace in comparing Gerda’s installation to the likes of building a sand castle – “Oh, so you build it to enjoy it for only a short time, then it gets washed away by the ocean, right?” In its essence, that is the magic of this piece of art. Gerda states, “The erasure is part of the concept of the beauty of ephemerality." The impact is equally as much about the physical creation of the art as it is the physical erasure. It is not meant to last forever. And that is OK. As a matter of fact there is much beauty to be found in what is not permanent. Gerda helps us to see and experience that with this installation, Salt of the Earth.
the crowds gathered, Gerda connected the two lines of salt, completing the installation. She then addressed the crowd over a microphone, “Beauty can be felt deeply and instantly; it doesn’t need to be here forever. Shortly, I will invite you to walk over the installation, and when you do, I ask you to think about the things that are stale in your life. Part of the inspiration for this piece is a scripture from the Bible that says, ‘You are the salt of the earth,’ and the second part is that if the salt loses its flavor, you can just stamp on it—it is not important anymore. And so when I invite you to walk over it, think maybe of the things in your life now that have become stale, to make room for something new.” Upon Gerda’s cue, the crowd gently helped to take down the barriers that roped off the installation area. People slowly and gingerly began moving over the piece, walking and then sliding their feet. The beautiful, crisp swirling lines of salt became smeared patches. We were the waves, washing over the sand castle. After the feeling of salt under the shoes became more familiar, people began to move more freely, even dancing over it. People posed for pictures and took videos. Children slid across it on their knees, and a skateboarder even road across it! There was a sense of wonder upon the participants’ faces, children and adults alike, as they met and glided across the floor. Cautious expressions broke into enthusiastic smiles and laughter. I know for me I let go of what was stale in my life as I walked over the salt. I felt free as I released the old and made room for the new. You can see a facebook live video of the erasure of Gerda’s piece as well as more pictures and other videos on the Monmouth Arts Facebook page.
It is more common for us to see public art showing up in our communities in the form of murals or sculpture—artwork that is more “permanent,” pieces of art that create landmarks, places that we can return to time and time again. This temporary and participatory public art installation challenges our notions of what art can be, of what public art can be. It is completely about being in the moment. This installation was made entirely of table salt. Just table salt! Gerda elevated an everyday, mundane material into an exquisite and deeply meaningful work of art, and she invited the public to be a part of that experience. Gerda noted, “Elevating salt to an artist's medium encourages audiences to find art all around them. Understanding that art is not only paintings hanging on a wall in a gallery can be a transformative experience." The two days of work culminated in the participatory art experience that would take place at 7pm, before the 4th of July fireworks began. While
PARTICIPATORY DECONSTRUCTION OF SALT OF THE EARTH