Language. Words. Text. I have arranged these terms in a hierarchical structure as I perceive them. Words are the physical or oral manifestation of linguistic structures that we form in our heads, and text is a form with which they take where the content is regarded as opposed to its physical form. Language however moves beyond the physical nature of a word, it is a cultural phenomenon that exits in its own realm. This is the area of study where I have based myself in an attempt to gain an understanding about my use of the written word in my work. I have used this topic to lead an investigation into the artistic practice of Mel Bochner, which moves through the disciplines of creativity and intellect, and has opened up the question of authorship, in both literary and artistic contexts. Working Drawings and Other Visible Things on Paper Not Necessarily Meant to Be Viewed as Art (1966) was a piece that blurs the boundaries between exhibition, publication and artwork. The set of four identical folders containing Xeroxed working drawings and scientific diagrams inhabit the whole gallery space. The drawings, from musical scores to architectural plans have all been subjected to the process of being homogenised through the use of the Xerox photocopier; all sense of individuality is lost as each drawing becomes a ‘page’. Does the work exist as a publication because of its printed format? Or can the piece even qualify as Bochner’s own due to the inclusion of the works from others? Is Bochner the artist or the author? This work related closely to the processes that I use with a photocopier, to flatten and standardise material. I find that the presentation in a folder format allows it to be an open container for a range of different disciplines, and it is this format that I want to explore in my work with the many strands that I have on the go at once. I am also drawn to Bochner’s thesaurus paintings, where speakers enter the work as voices are materialised in words painted on the canvas. Bochner investigates the synonym in these paintings, moving from one primary key word through a family of related words. As a result the meaning changes with each word as it moves away from its initial starting point. When looking at these works I liken them to the type of abstraction processes I have subjected my own writing to. Through processes of selection and reduction I have created new lists of words and phrases that collectively embody my writing, even if the meaning is unclear.
In all of his text works, Bochner engages the viewer in two activities, one in visually scanning the image and the second actually reading the words. Both require a different perception and this engineers a collision of thought. Images are mute, and thus the words carry a weight of speech that communicates with the viewer. In Bochner’s work he demonstrates the philosophy that language is not always interpreted through words alone.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorThird Year BA Hons Fine Art student studying at Falmouth University Archives
April 2017
|