video, two printed and framed conversations, 2008
The video work Which one should I buy? models the process that takes place between collectors and gallerists when a work of art is purchased. Throughout the experiment two gallerists, Gábor Kozák and Margit Valkó, compete against each other in making the collectors, Zsolt Somlói and Katalin Spengler, buy the piece offered by them. The participants, however, remain incognito to one another, and even the artworks up for sale remain unseen by the collectors. Communication is conducted through chat, using only written verbal communication in a dialogue about visual phenomena. But is a work of art exclusively visual? The collectors‘ prying questions and the strategies used by the gallerists tell a lot about the principles governing the art market. Meanwhile,visuality is successfully - or unsuccessfully - translated into linguistic structures before our eyes. The exhibition presents a video documenting the two bargainings and the encounter/exposure, as well as a „photograph“ representing the text of the chat talks.
Tijana Stepanovic
