Art — Review

Last night, I found refuge in the Byre from the darkness and the cold rain that was falling in St Andrews. I watched a play entitled Art, directed by Callum Wardman-Browne and produced by Matthew Colquhoun, which tells the story of three friends and the object which brought chaos into their relationship: a completely white painting. Serge, one of the three protagonists, buys the piece of art for 100 grand. His best friend, Marc, does not understand the purchase, upset that his friend could spend that amount of money for a seemingly worthless object. Yvan tries to be the voice of reason, but only ends up being insulted and ignored.

The actors who played Serge and Marc, Struan Barker and Buster Van Der Geest, respectively, excellently portrayed their characters’ complicated relationship. Serge and Marc represented two extremes. Serge loves modern and contemporary art and almost takes pride in his ability to understand it. Marc is the nostalgic intellectual, who rejects any trace of modernity with rage. Marc criticises Serge for his pretentiousness, or for his lack of “a sense of humour”. Serge does the same to Marc. Meanwhile, the character of Yvan gets criticised for his “spinelessness” for not expressing an explicit position on the white painting. Simultaneously, he is the only one who truly wants the friendship to work. His desire to avoid conflict and open up to his friends is taken by them to be a symptom of self-absorption and indifference. Yvan, played by Danny Spiezio, impressively portrayed the exasperation his character feels not only about his personal life, but also about the way his friends constantly misunderstand him, giving a magnetic standout performance.

The set design reflected the centrality of the white painting. In the background, surrounding the huge, white painting, there are two other canvases. The canvases were turned around when the setting changed. In traditionalist Marc’s house, one of the canvases was turned around to reveal the figurative painting of a landscape. In Yvan’s house, the other canvas revealed a colourful abstract painting. Later in the plot, we find out that the work was made by Yvan’s father. Marc’s is traditional, while Yvan’s has sentimental value. The artworks reflected the personalities of the two characters. Something similar can be said about the costumes, by Ella Tyson. Serge wore business-casual attire, showing an effort to be stylish in a modern way. Marc, in a long red trench coat, wearing a dress shirt and an old fashioned blue satin puff tie, was the opposite. His character remains in the past, showing disdain for the present. Yvan wore simple clothing, with beige trousers, a shirt and a blue jacket. He was dressed effortlessly, reflecting his unpretentious personality.

When the characters spoke directly to us, the audience, revealing how they feel, they were showered in a strong, bright light illuminating their facial features and expressions. When their souls became completely visible, their faces did too.

I found the show exceptional. Every detail was well thought over and complemented the plot. What’s even better is that I felt called out by the play. I saw myself in Marc and in Serge, in their willingness to hide behind pseudo-intellectual disputes about art to conceal the real problems they had with each other. Yvan represents the frustration that is a consequence of this. He truly cares, but is not taken seriously. The paradox is that concerns about friendship run deep, but are disregarded because they are not covered by a veil of facetiousness and presumption. 

Often, we discuss art solely for the sake of seeming profound, but end up neglecting what truly runs deep within our hearts. Art is an impressive exploration of that very conflict.

Photo by Matthew Colquhoun