Week three- History repeats itself.

In this weeks post I have taken a break from my reading list and am exploring other artists works.

The class and Research.

This weeks class was in the form of a lecture in which we created drawings or notes in response to the material we were absorbing. In my responses I think a lot about how unsure I am of time, without my phone I wouldn’t be able to keep track of It all. However, I found it interesting that there are many non quantitive ways of measuring time, fir example ice melting or flowers blooming.

Peter Tscherkassky

For my chosen research in class I decided to choose something seemly unexpected of me. I was drawn to Peter Tscherkassky’s film ‘Outer Space) (1999), I loved the distortion and punk nature of his work. Originally from the film The entity (1982) the footage has been alterted to push the boundaries of film, making it appear as if the woman in the footage was fighting not just the spirt of the film but the film itself. While seemingly breaking the fourth wall the film still feels organic, its chaotic energy demanding attention in a dynamic way. When linking to the overall theme of Time, I like how Tscherkassky’s work ignores the chronological and creates his own new linear. I want to consider this approach in my own work, my paintings often feel very linear (moving from one to the next like in ‘the everyday’ project) and moving away from this might help me evolve my work.

Chris Burden

For my second responsive piece of artist research I am focusing on Chris Burden’s ‘Bed Piece’ (1972). In this piece Burden lay in bed for 22 days, not speaking to anyone and only caring for his essential needs (food, water, toilet facilities). When discussing the piece in class we seemed to to revolve around the concept of wellbeing, the representation of mental health and how we treat ourselves. To stay in bed for 22 days would be both physically and mentally challenging, so why would Burden put himself through this experience? I think the artist is creating a paradox between what we preside as healthy and what we might really need as people, I can relate to this as I feel like I am contradicting myself often. For example I have the urge to do something brilliant (creating something fabulously raw and interesting for a viewer) but, at the same time I want to make and be nothing, to just simply exist in a space until I inevitably stop doing so. I’ve been told this is because I’m a Gemini..However, I think this much more likely to be the result of a complicated upbringing, neurodiversity and capitalistic society. Furthermore the third image is the aftermath of another one of Burden’s pieces called ‘Shot’, in which he is deliberately shot by a friend. There is a clarity surrounding Chris Burdens relationship with pain, having it at the centre of his creative integrity. I can’t help but wonder why or if something in his life triggered his desire to explore emotion in this way, or is it a more simplistic human urge to feel.

Experiments

For my experiments this week I have decided to go even further back to IP 3! My first attempt at installation (unfortunately, obviously) in which I explored memories and the journey I have taken in my life. I am very harsh on myself about this project because I know I could do better (In particular the illustrations inwhich I showed more skill previously). I think it’s important for me to be critical of this work as its highly relevant in the project I make today furthermore, i think one of the reason It was at as a high of a standard as I hoped is because my heart wasn’t fully in it. This was only the beginning of my attempt to be vulnerable and honest and I could have achieved more, I know that anxiety and fear of judgement held me back. So this week I am determined to reinvent one of my drawings to see if I can elevate it and in turn elevate my current project.