A simple set of stairs in a housing building are at the center of a swirling controversy over a Lasalle student’s art installation, and a number of people and officials are taking sides over just whether it is art or not.
The piece itself, colloquially titled “The Golden Staircase,” is made from gold leaf applied to a short flight of stairs in the housing building where the art student herself lives. The effect of the gold leaf, which took several hours to fully apply, is something quite magical. It gleams even in low lighting, like it is a stairway to a wonderful place. The artist herself said that her work beautifies something that before was quite dull and boring — gray concrete. However simple the art installation may be, the art student said that she also wished to engage her critics in a discussion of public space versus private space, as well as what, exactly, art means from person to person.
Some people who viewed the artwork after reading about it in news reports laud the art student’s efforts, saying the installation was a breath of fresh air in an otherwise mundane space. The art is functional, as the stairs can still be used in the same way as before, and it makes the stairwell into something special. These supporters agree that the art looks good, and gives an extra boost of beauty and attention to something that might otherwise have been overlooked. They added that the stairwell in the building is rarely used, since an elevator services each floor.
However, critics of the art say that the art student made a misstep by not first securing permission to create the installation. The body that governs the housing building said that the installation is out of line and that the art student should have created something else in her private space. Whether she would have been granted permission if she had asked for it before applying the gold foil remains to be seen, though the building’s governing body said they wanted to work with the student to find an amicable solution, including employing her to make murals in other parts of the building. Other critics of the installation say that though it is aesthetically pleasing, it is still nothing more than vandalism. One person even went so far as to say that just because it looks nice doesn’t meant that it’s any different from illicit tagging of buildings with spray paint in an ugly way.
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To read more about “The Golden Staircase” installation and the turmoil surrounding it, go to http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/its-art.