Haecceity

“A Haecceity has neither beginning nor end, origin nor destination; it is always in the middle. ”

Alan, Taylor, Haecceity (he ke’ti) 1996- The University of Texas at Arlington, http:///www.uta.edu/english/apt/d&g/haeccity,html

A week into my residency and the installation of the first gallery drawing I feel that the drawing and the installation as a whole is now beginning to flow.

As with any new piece of work you have to build an understanding with it and this work has been no different. The first few days felt like it was an archeological dig where I was excavating the drawing physically from the wall. I have found the Limestone much harder to work with than I had anticipated. Compared to charcoal it is much less responsive and demands a new way of approaching mark making. Each piece has its own characteristics, colour and feel which is reflected through the mark it leaves on the wall.

The drawings are very much sites of action where the marks are the beginning of seeing and experiencing a memory or reimagined space.

Listening to ‘Only Artists’  (Radio 4)with Humphrey Ocean and Mark Alexander there was a rather lovely conversation about how marks laid down are the beginning of a conversation; to put down the first mark creates a dialogue from within until something new emerges. This seemed particularly relevant to me as was drawing. Playing with the idea that maybe I am uncovering something that has always been there but has only just materialized in to physical space.

The gallery space itself is quite different to any I have worked in previously it’s location means that it is a transient space, one where visitors expect to move through in order to reach the main collections. Through the drawing I am inviting those audiences to deviate from their expected journey, to dwell and consider an evolving, incomplete work but also to encounter the artist who is present in the space.

Many visitors have been kind enough to take time to discuss the work and my role in the space which has been insightful and interesting helping me to understand how my work is perceived. It has been important for me to remember that I am not trying to create a definitive view, the drawing must remain transient and the audience must be allowed to explore and consider what is beyond the physical marks on the wall.

Over the past few weeks as my residency approached I have been revisiting the mossland locations from within the scan data.

This process helps me to focus on the memory and experience of being in place and then translate this into creating a visual Haecceity.

After several years of working with the Scene software I still need to approach each new data set as if it were the first time I had used it.  Every scan is a new experience and it takes me several weeks of working with it before I begin to capture images I connect with.

As the images progress then they shift from screen data drawings to physical ink on paper/board.  This recreates a 3-dimensional quality and the drawings suddenly become objects to explore.

The decision to use conductive ink to create touch responsive panels was not part of my original proposal.  However, this seemed a natural progression for the project as so much of what my research is about is the multi-sensory experience of place and how we look through many senses.

I am working with friend Leon Hardman, he also works at UCLan and is the brains behind the tech responsible for creating and carrying the sound.  More than this though he is co-author of these pieces and has selected the sounds captured from Risley Moss in response to my images.  Yesterday we began the install at Warrington Museum, the printed panels created at Artlab Contemporary Print Studios @UCLan in Preston will carry sound when touched. The testing has been problematic to say the least as this application of conductive ink is pushing the limits of our knowledge, the space and the materials.

One of the things I love about collaborating is the energy and drive which is created between two artists when their practices overlap.  There becomes a space in different disciplines where something new can be created, it is exciting and challenging, unpredictable and rewarding.

The testing is not complete and we will continue to work on the install over the coming days.  Through this residency and the opportunity gifted by the Museum and WCAF2017 my research and this installation has moved towards a new level of engagement, rediscovering seeing through physical interaction.