By Catherine Stephens-Ward, Artes Mundi Live Guide
From the moment Artes Mundi opened on Tuesday night, my feet haven't touched the ground. I have already experienced so much during my time at the Museum that I don't know where to begin, so I will start at the beginning. I saw the exhibition for the first time, just moments before the private view opened, which over 300 people came to. Like in all exhibition previews that I have gone to, I talked more than I saw, and it was really interesting to finally hear other people's views on the art works, having formed my own opinions during the last 4 weeks that I have been studying them.
The following day, I got to meet some of the artists- Olga from Russia, Adrian from Albania, Ergin from Bulgaria and Yael from Israel. I was very excited. I had so many questions I wanted answers to- what was life really like in Communist Albania? Does a Jewish Renaissance movement actually exist? And why are people pushing a piano over the Bulgarian/Turkish border?
I got my answers and a lot more. Hearing their stories from all over the world was a very special and unique experience. Olga told me that the reason why there is no-one buying from the market stalls in her watercolour pictures is that often it is so cold in Moscow that people don't leave their houses. I hadn't thought of this. When I gave my first tour today, I passed on my new found knowledge. I have learnt so much about the world we live in, but how much do we really know?
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