I have been busy in the studio over the last few days. After some general research on text and art I am struck by the idea of a tension between an image and a text. How that text also becomes an image? How language is open to interpretation, abuse and humor. I am not sure of my future direction as yet as I still need to be better grounded on the art history of text in painting and other media but also an array of artists using text in their work. I have a long list to work through but for now, I always need to get the balance right and have been testing ideas in the studio. I have 5 studies which are on MDF on either a4 or a5 size as follows:
Each sample is testing something different. My starting point is the Christopher Wool/Richard Prince idea of slurring words one into the other so that the viewer has to work to get the information. I quite like this but I am not sure if its the way to go.
Also, I wanted to combine an image with text. To play with the idea of a tension and misunderstanding.
Other decisions have been source material. Do I go for popular culture cliche or famous art quotes, like the Kothus ‘art as idea, as idea’ and the lightbulb image.
Or so I want this at all, do I want it to be more lighthearted and poking humor at our soundbite society.
Other things to consider so the distance from the viewer at which point the text is legible. As these are only small text pieces it does underline the need to really upscale when I am progressing to more refined works for the final exhibition.
Using stencils and correcting them by hand, or just using your own handwriting, these are all things I have to now consider. I need to sharpen my own critical awareness and source material to decide what is working and what is not but I am pleased for now that I have begun to play. To see the effect text can fully have in a work, whether in its totality or accompanied by a more traditional image.
I am not sure at all.
