The Infinite Mix

Various Artists

The Store, 180 The Strand

9 SEPTEMBER - 11 DECEMBER 2016

Free

The Infinite Mix brings together thrilling and diverse audiovisual artworks which both contrast and compliment each other. Having not been to an 'audiovisual' exhibition before, I was very intrigued.

Housed in impressively large 'The Store' on the Strand, the Infinite Mix takes you on a journey through incredibly different stories, visuals and sounds. It is an illumination of both sight and smell (and touch if you factor in that the venue was incredibly cold!) I was extremely lucky to have this incredible exhibition right around the corner from my office. A combination of 10 videos comprise the full exhibition, each lasting no longer than 20 minutes and whilst some simply blew me away, others left me a bit lost.

One work in particular which stood out to me positively was Room 3: Ugo Rondinone's black and white immersive video installation featuring John Giorno performing 'THANX 4 NOTHING'. In the poem, Giorno retrospectively looks back at his life with a light heart, whilst also recognising the damages and hurt he has had to endure. The poem is specific to Giorno of course, but elements of it cannot help feeling universal, helping the viewer feel incredibly emotive towards his speech. Both the content and the visuals of this artwork were mind capturing and moving, Rondinone has done an excellent job in reflecting the drama of the monologue through the visual effects whilst still allowing Giorno to take centre stage.

Another impressive work was Room 4: Kahlil Josef - m.A.A.d which documented life in the LA area of Compton set to the soundtrack 'good kid, m.A.A.d city' by Kendrick Lamar. Kahlil Josef used mostly his own recordings, making the work almost autobiographical, however home videos recorded by his uncle are also featured in the video. The artwork works off of two screens simultaneously, a sensory overload which requires a lot of skill on the part of the artist. Josef's combination of shots work in beautiful harmony, and whilst the story progresses we begin to decipher a narrative. The result of Josef's work is a gritty realism which cuts deep into the viewer and leaves a lasting impact.

Not all of the works featured were this impressive, for example I left Cameron Jamie's 'Massage the History' before it was finished out of pure boredom, whilst Jeremy Deller & Cecilia Bengolea's - 'Bom Bom’s Dream' was hilarious but left me baffled as to how it could have been justifiably positioned next to such skillful works such as the above.

If there was one thing The Infinite Mix provided, it was variety. The first time we went was after I'd finished work one day and by the time we got round to it we were actually too late to view Room 10: Cyprien Gaillard's 3D Artwork 'Nightlife'. Returning on the last day of the exhibition, we waited over an hour just to see what was hiding in this last room. This, I believe, goes to show that even though not all works in the exhibition hit the spot entirely, the show overall made enough of an impact for me to not quit until I had completed it.