Friday 5 October 2012

The infinite Line

I am currently reading a book called 'The Infinite Line' written by Briony Fer. She discusses repetition as a function in which we all act upon with a quote from Deleuze, he describes the 'unconscious of representation. If we are lost without repetition, we are also lost to it and in thrall to it. As the very ground of consciousness, repetition cuts both ways, both shoring up and shattering its fragile and precious hold.

"What would life be like if there was no repetition?"

The book discusses paintings by Agnes Martin as how when setting up a process that is based upon repeating a line over and over until the painter is satisfied it becomes, mundane and mechanical like, removing the artist's hand from the paintings all together. They do not represent any thing - Martin states creating only meaning brought by the viewer. She does though consider sensation in her paintings such as - joy, bliss and sublime.

"The series alternate and interrupt the grid in a variety of ways overlaying it with hieroglyph - type arcs the lozenge shapes or reducing it to morse - like dots and dashes"

I think in terms of Martin's practice, I find interesting this mundane process in which she individually draws single lines on a canvas over and over again, each trying to better the other. I see my practice at a similar point, although i am not drawing single lines on a canvas, I am creating build up of tone and form creating shadows and layers - each time I make a work I will try better it in the next by trying to apply the same or similar to process.     

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