There are now 7 weeks before final assessment. I have given considerable thought to work produced to date? What, why and how do I wish to present work? There are three distinct strands to my work. All are linked to my initial proposal and each has an individual approach. I can recognize constraints within each strand, yet all offer opportunity for extension and development towards a final concept which could be presented for Degree Show in June.
I am considering that perhaps the strongest concept is my early approach where I used a direct physical contact with one of the oak tree growing in the field opposite my home. It was a very intimate contact with a tree that I pass by and engage with on a very frequent basis. This physical connection of making a frottage from the bark of a mature oak tree using a direct and simple approach can be perceived as a beginning, a point of departure that extends into many different realms. In this environment one is at the mercy of the elements, the wind is blowing, the sun is shining, there is the smell of muck spreading on an adjacent field. I am aware of birdsong, I engage with people as they pass by walking their dogs, a human contact and interchange - all senses are awakened. The land, the sky, the air, human intervention, the history, the geography of the environment where I am physically present become interwoven within my mind. I relate to the this method of engagement on a more spiritual level as well as an awakening of the senses.
There is a human physical element, a meditative quality of repetition as one works around the circumference of the tree. A simple exercise that when evaluated proves to quite complex both in physical, emotional and and 'spiritual' terms.
The Quercus Robur, a pedunculate oak is indigenous to the British Isles. Oak trees are often referred to as 'The tree of life' and have a huge spectrum of associations throughout society. I perceive it as an iconic symbol of the British Isles both on an historical, mythical, spiritual and symbolic level. A tree that is prolific, easily recognised and so prevalent within the British landscape provides a complexity of components as well as sustaining an incredible diversity of life form. It is an object which is easily accessible and I have found that by examination and investigation it has provided a great initial stimulus which captures my imagination and provides a new awakening to the natural world.
Below are three photographs of an ancient oak, the largest tree I have found in my local area. This tree stands alone, majestic in the field adjacent to the Frome Road in a field that lies in front of Southwick Court, the oldest house in Southwick. It is a beautiful and mature specimen presenting both height and width on a grand scale. Its shape formed by the winds, with heavy, bent and twisted boughs almost touching the ground.It is a significant landmark when travelling from Southwick to Trowbridge along the Frome Road.
The image below shows two frottages taken from a mature oak tree in the field opposite my home. This is an example of the format I am considering for final degree show. It is a simple and direct method of producing beautiful marks using graphite pencil and wax resist to make frottage works and one that has been used throughout art history Currently I am researching various numbers that are significant within christian and Zen Buddhism ideologies as I wish to present a specific number of frottages in a cylindrical form. This will then extend and enhance the number of levels of interpretation alongside the the more obvious references to yin and yang, form of oak trunk and its host plants and age circles as well as connecting directly to the ground by placing on the floor.
Frottage can be seen to be rather passe and outmoded, yet it has many qualities, seeking out the cracks, fissures and imperfections it is evocative of memory shedding light on the overlooked interstices within our environment. It is an act of unveiling, investigating the obscure, presenting and questioning our perceptions of the familiar. The technique provides a simple, non technological approach which maintains a direct and physical tie to its referent being deliberate and unhurried.
Compositions depend on chance, random accident where the artist attains freedom from the past and form learnt academia. The limitations of the imagination by the conscious mind are removed.
ALEATORY means 'pertaining to luck' and derives from the Latin word alea, the rolling of die. Aleatoric, indeterminate, or chance art is that which exploits the principle of randomness.
This can be seen as artists deliberately using chance to escape the conscious mind. Yet there is control and application of mind which is quite apart from a 'happy acccident'.
There is a tradition of Japanese and Chinese artists employing aleatoric methods, many influenced by Taosim and Zen Buddhism.
This is particularly significant in regard to my approach of producing work that explores imagery using cross cultural referencing. "Rubbings belong to the indefinable status of 'in between', and embody the transformation that occurs in the transfer from surface to surface" says Allegra Presenti, exhibition curator of the APPARITIONS;FROTTAGES AND RUBBINGS FROM 1860 TO NOW Exhibition at The Hammer Museum, Los Angeles Feb to May 31, 2015. Below are two images from the exhibition.(more information can be found in relation to this exhibition and the artists in my Context Folder.
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| Steven Steinman Shroud of Berlin Museumsinsel 2007 218.5 x 112cm |
Max Ernst Forest and Sun Graphite on Paper
Chance is a significant word to use in relation to making marks. Chance suggests an unconscious input. Always there will be prescriptive gestures but what occurs when using the frottage method of making marks is beyond our physical control, the object dictates the outcome in conjunction with the materials used. The surface is uneven, irregular and the physical hand is not totally in control, it takes away the artist's imagination and preconceived outcomes.
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