Something slighlty different today. I was challenged by my friends cross-the-pond, (thank you Karen and Reagan!) to follow a Bob Ross tutorial with them, series 15 episode 4, Peacful Relections if anyone is interested! The catch being to  paint the whole thing, in the time period of the show, 27 mins I believe, in oils, but only using my fingers!
Well, challenge accepted I believe...

Rückenfigur, staffage, spectator or observer?
The ‘accessories’ of an artistic composition (companion). Where do I stand? Part 4.

In answer to this question, we, have three choices as to what the image may be, although all three of these options may be meditated in a variety of ways.

Option 1 is that the image is in fact simply a mirror attached to the opposite wall of the room. The figure which is observed in the image is actually our own reflection, hence its familiarity. In this case the image which we are observing is a description of the events taking place in the space before the wall; therefore, we, the observer is a participant in these events.

Option 2 is that what appears to be an image is actually a ‘scene’ viewed through a window or doorway located within the opposite wall of the room. The person we see may be very familiar for a variety of reasons which are unimportant to the situation. In this case the image which we are observing is a description of the events taking place in the space behind the wall, we are looking through the fourth wall as we do when we watch a play at the theatre; therefore, we, the observer are a spectator to the events until we interact with the space beyond the window or door, breaking the fourth wall, at which time we once again become a participant in those events.

Option 3 is that the image is a painting, or other two-dimensional image, on, or attached parallel to, the plane of the wall, an image of a counterfeit or illusionistic space. Once again, the person we see may be very familiar for a variety of reasons which are unimportant to the situation. In this case the image which we are observing is a description of virtual events which take place only in the flat illusionistic space on the wall; therefore, we, the observer remains purely an observer of these events.

To be continued...

'The Constant Library',  Volume XXVI: "On The Road. Jack Kerouac."

"The idea for 'The Constant Library' follows on from a recent conversation considering which books had, and continue to have, the greatest affect my life in a variety of different ways. These are the books I can't live without and whenever possible I have a copy of with me wherever I travel in the world; my 'Constant Library."

During The Self-Isolation Residency, whilst I have been working on my 'Personal Topographies' series of paintings, I have been reflecting on how much travel has been such an important influence on my work over the years. The very static nature of the residency has really thrown the idea of travel into sharp relief, which is probably why I have also been drawn back to feature some of my favourite travel writing in The Constant Library. I'm actually really quite surprised that 'On The Road' hadn't made an earlier appearance in the series, particulary with it's backdrop being the USA. But more than that, the surreal and very personal feeling of travel and landscape exhibited in the book in many ways reminds me of, and probably heavily influenced, my 'Personal Topographies' paintings.

Rückenfigur, staffage, spectator or observer?
The ‘accessories’ of an artistic composition (companion). Where do I stand? Part 3.

Suggesting notions such as these in relation to what may be considered as a comparatively straightforward idea, that of a painting hanging on a wall and our experience of it, may seem extreme to some. To expand and refine the possibilities of the proscenium and their importance let us try to envisage how this theory can be practically experienced.
An observer stands at the threshold of an unfamiliar room with no prior context to suggest what to find in the room, and looks in. The room it is well, although not overly, lit so that what details which there are in the room are well defined. The wall directly opposite the entrance through which the observer is viewing the room features an image surrounded by a simple unadorned frame. The image within the frame appears to show a room which is well, although not overly, lit so that what details there are in the room are well defined. The far wall of the room in the image features an entrance and it is through this entrance which a very familiar figure appears to stand at the threshold looking into the space. The obvious question is, what am I, as our observer, looking at? Where do I stand?

To be continued...

Rückenfigur, staffage, spectator or observer?
The ‘accessories’ of an artistic composition (companion). Where do I stand? Part 2.

This question of where does the observer stand in relation to a piece of art is far more complex than it initially sounds; indeed, it can and should also be expanded to include the enquiry into where does the artist stand? But let’s approach each of these facets of the issue separately dealing with the observers position first. Let us begin by considering the observers relationship to ‘painting’, or to any traditional form of two-dimensional artwork as it is conventionally encountered.

When this ‘painting’ hangs on a wall, parallel to that wall’s vertical plane as we would traditionally encounter it, it actually does something much more complex than is at first considered. This painting becomes, what has historically been considered to be, the equivalent of a theatrical proscenium; the oft mentioned ‘fourth wall’ of the stage. The fourth wall is an imagined plane which in theatrical terms is framed by the two sides and top of the proscenium arch and by the stage floor itself. This virtual quadrilateral plane forms the structure not just of paintings but of all two-dimensional framing devices which we may encounter in the world, from the theatrical stage to windows and doors. From our ‘painting’ to TV and all other manner of screens and onto our humble bathroom mirrors.

To be continued...

Rückenfigur, staffage, spectator or observer?
The ‘accessories’ of an artistic composition (companion). Where do I stand?
 
My recent exhibition of ‘Personal Topographies: work from the Self-Isolation Residency’ at Dunoon Burgh Hall has provided me with an inordinate opportunity for reflection on how my working process has and is evolving. Indeed, seeing so much of my new work together in exhibition context has become the catalyst for what I hope will facilitate a better sympathy and expression of my preoccupations.

One theme which has always been of concern to me is how the spectator/observer interacts with my, or indeed with any, art works. In the 21st century such encounters with art can take many forms, which can be both healthy and unhealthy in their elucidation of the philosophies being expounded within the work; by ‘unhealthy’ I am referring to the inevitable frequent misinterpretation of work by a spectator owing its poor mediation. Via this latest exhibition encounter with my own work I have once again initiated a revision, or perhaps revisit into, what has been a long-time concern for me as artist, the question posed to the observer of ‘where do I stand?’

To be continued...