Sophie Köhler (Essen, Germany, 1977), winner of the Fundació Vila Casas Photography Prize 2020, presents a photographic and sound project that explores the impact that art has on people who are exposed to it for eight hours a day: museum attendants.
This audiovisual project immerses us in the rooms of some of the most important museums in Barcelona – the Fundació Tàpies, Museu Nacional d'Art de Catalunya (MNAC), Fundació MAPFRE and the Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona (MACBA) – seeking a new perspective. Köhler flips the direction of the gaze and gives a voice and face to the museum attendants, a group staff who are invisible to most even though they are the only people who accompany the visitor when viewing the artworks.
It has been calculated that the average length of time a visitor will observe a work of art for is 28.63 seconds. What happens if someone spends up to eight hours a day in front of works of art by Tàpies or Rodin? What effect does this have on their work routines? And on their personal life? How do they cope with the silence and solitude that their work involves?
This project examines each individual answer to these questions and invites us to reflect on the impact art has on everyday life.
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