Rachel Whiteread at MFA, Boston

When I lived in NYC in 1999, I would make special trips to SoHo just to see Rachel Whiteread's Watertower piece. It is a clear resin cast of the inside of one of the ubiquitous watertowers in Manhattan, installed on a watertower base on the top of a building. Amidst all of the bustle and commotion of the street below, it was like a secret oasis of calm, still water- frozen. It could also be quite spectacular when hit by the sun.
Last week, Rachel Whiteread opened a show at the MFA, Boston and gave two lectures about her work. Although her work looks very simple, it is deceptively thoughtful and emotional. Everyone needs to go see her installation, Village, as soon as possible. It is an arrangement of hand-made dollhouses that she has been collecting over the last 20 years. The room is dark and each dollhouse is lit from within, resembling a village at night. You might at first associate to a Christmas display in some shop, but when you stand there in the dark and reflect on the fact that each house was made by an individual- the piece represents the lives of possibly hundreds of people- it can give you goosebumps.