RHA Gallery – RHA E-bulletin Monday 17th August
A Message from Peter McGovern ARHA
It has been fascinating to observe the adaptability of the human condition in full flight over the last six months or so. The speed and willingness of my colleagues to adapt to remote working notwithstanding an initial global shortage of laptops and microphone headsets (not just toilet roll) was nothing short of remarkable. There was no pause. There was uncertainty of course but the deadlines and workflow were unchanged.
Immediately the organisations we work with clamoured for answers. Indeed, we needed to grapple with our own changed circumstances. What would the future look like at home and at work? The demise of the office as we know it was predicted by many. Early data suggested that we are, on average, statistically happier working from home. But amidst the irony of new freedoms a sense that something was missing. We are social animals after all.
My personal circumstances are fortunate and privileged. The apocalypse unfolding on the daily news has not visited my family in any significant way. However, the longer the restrictions stretched the more difficult I found it to be effective with my own work. Relying heavily on the talent and energy of others, the separation from my colleagues is a challenge. The vitality and immediacy of personal interaction is significantly less effective across the internet. Yes, it is fine for a technical discussion (assuming decent broadband), but to harness the ingredients of creativity, ideation and collective analysis, togetherness is not only important but necessary. It turns out we need the twitch, the blink, the small talk, the stare, the comfortable silence, the airspace of interaction, even the bristle of dissatisfaction, the yes, the no, the gesture, the body language, these things are essential communication tools and it turns out are vital ingredients of progress. Architecture, like most professions, is a team sport. Isolation and distance, even where reduced by digital technology, is not conducive to effective problem solving.
With the easing of restrictions, the studio is beginning once again to whirr and click with the sound of collaborative work. The virus protocols are slowly becoming invisible norms. The energy and vitality has not yet returned in full but there is an air of cautious optimism and positivity.
We are adaptable, we are inventive, we are capable. Change is inevitable but is rarely unmanageable. In the long term we can expect the modifications to our daily existence to be relatively marginal and mildly positive. Like all change, the impact will evaporate into the habitual. Everything else will be nostalgia. Let us concentrate on the positives, a return to community, a renewed respect for others and a redoubling of our concern for the environment, more flexible working conditions, and a beneficial harnessing of technology. History has shown us that crises often precipitate new movements in cultural and artistic expression. Perhaps when the dust settles on the daily counts, we will even find ourselves at the beginning of something remarkable.
Have a great week.
Peter McGovern ARHA
RHA EXHIBITIONS ARCHIVE
Brian Eno
77 Million Paintings
January – February 2019
Curator’s Notes, Patrick Murphy, RHA Director:
Over 30,000 people visited the RHA in January and February 2019 to view the Brian Eno exhibition. It was a mesmeric installation turning the voluminous space of the main gallery into meditative and intimate environment.
RHA SCHOOL
RHA School Courses
Term 1, 2020
Last Week for Applications
Foundation Drawing, Term 1
Foundation Painting, Term 1
Mentored Drawing, Term 1
Self-Directed Life Drawing
Applications close this Sunday 23 August and Sunday 30 August for Self-Directed Life Drawing.
