Meta-art - Notes on Creating: March 2006

Artist Adrian Piper defines Meta-Art in “In support of Meta-Art”, as the activity of making explicit the thought processes of making whatever kind of art we make. The material exists along side of, part of, and instead of the art itself. The following notes describes my creative process.

Limited choice: colour and form

In the process of laying down charcoal with my fingers I begin to discover some form in the work. Much as a sculptor with a piece of marble. Gently eroding the white space until the form is fully realised/ actualised.

The limited palette necessarily limits choice to the colour of the surface and the extreme blackness of the charcoal.

Light and dark fighting. Tension barely contained. A strange calm battling against inevitability.

Negative space

It is the spaces between objects that join them. The spaces in between connect things to each other, not the things themselves. A lot can be understood by paying attention to the space around things. It connects us to ourselves and to each other; at the same time transporting us beyond (this). Our understanding of ‘a thing’ will shift with the context in which it is placed. It is not a metamorphosis of an object shifting meaning, but rather that meaning is shifted by the space around the object.

Meaning what’s the point?

“We paint the same picture all our lives.” Artist and mentor, Fred Cress.

It is no more sufficient to create images that can be enjoyed for their beauty alone than to make art that only speaks in political tones.

Detached from its political and cerebral roots the image must stand up in its own right and resonate with the aesthetic sensibilities of the viewer. Whilst the work is concerned with aesthetics and is an agency for activism, it must also engage the viewer in some intangible way. It must be honest, understanding what it is, paying homage to the specificities of its own nature; the specific materials deployed and the use, application and exhibition of these. And then, and only if, the viewer so desires the artwork must be in a position to engage their intellect.

Process

There is no end, no end-result. Satisfaction is not the point to art making and success is elusive. There are flashes within the creative process where everything makes a kind of sense that is not easily articulated. This clarity is momently glimpsed and cannot be held or captured. It is ephemeral. Its importance rapidly deteriorates in relation to me. In itself it is insufficient. The resulting work creates more questions than answers.

Artists are opportunists, stealing experiences from all around them. The everyday provides opportunities to practice every day. Art-making is part of everyday life rather than separate from it. I create as much as I can… as if time were running out. Perfection (if indeed such a thing can ever be realised) comes from the constant doing. Perfecting the ‘do-over’ by creating as many works as possible rather than by reworking a single (precious) work. Being prolific.

Persistence

Talent runs aground without persistence and making art is most difficult when it is well, at its most difficult. There are times when the work is weighed down by outmoded or overused ideas and practices. At times I cannot even see that this is the case; at others I lack the skills to save the work; or am unable to glimpse a new direction in which to move. The solution is in the doing (even if I cannot see it). It is only in the doing that new skills will develop and only by walking across the landscape that new vistas can be glimpsed.

The art of conversation between the artwork and the artist

The series

A series is coming to a close when the conversation begins to run out and another must be found. Being open to a new concept is the only requirement. From here the concept will present itself. Creeping or flying towards me off the page, the screen to some other every day experience. Worthy subjects for art making are every where. At any given moment I am surrounded by them.

Once I have the (idea of) the subject it must be investigated as to its nature, purpose and methods. Only then can it be mined for art works. Investigating a new subject is not dissimilar to carrying out a criminal investigation or carrying out research so that one can write a new book or make a movie. It is a process of gathering, organising and collating as much information on the subject as possible. The result is a mass of working drawings, photocopies, electronic files, recordings and scribbled notes. Throughout this process I am trying to ‘make (my) sense’ of it all. To understand what my position is… what is it I want to say about the subject? How do I want to articulate this… and with what tools… with what visual language… in which context?

Eventually this is all distilled into the beginnings of a new series of work. The initial edge of steps into unknown territory clearly visible early in the series will be replaced by bold, confident works that strike an authoritative stance on the subject matter and handling of materials. At this time the conversation is beginning to run out. The process must begin again. At times the subject matter may remain with research into new materials or ways of working providing a new voice or positioning to the subject.

Individual works

The beginning is the most fragile time. It contains all the possibilities and none of the certainty. This fragility must be understood and respected and yet art making cannot be approached tentatively. There are so many ways to administer the kiss of death.

The beginning is the point at which the work is at its most open. From the beginning each mark will necessarily limit possible outcomes and direct things a certain way. Any idea that takes over the work will kill the conversation that is taking place between the art work and me. When I approach the easel I have no more idea how this conversation will go than I can predict the direction of a conversation with any one person. Through the interchange of mark making, each one informing the next, the conversation will eventually be over and the work finished.

Finally at the point where the work is completed I step away from my role as an artist, connecting to the work as a viewer. Subjectivity has slipped through the hands of the artist and into that of the viewer.

Potential art works float through me all day… a feeling, a moment, a turn of phrase, a newspaper headline, a fever, a headache, a conversation… all connected in a series by the theme that is underpinning the work at that time. Precious few of these potential art works make it to the canvas. Cause and effect. The everyday experience is as important as the underlying theme. Everyday connections with surroundings as important as understanding the earth’s “immune response against the human species…” Take away the everyday and all that remains is abstraction, dislocated from reality, incapable of ‘realness,’ insincere.