Second Post of the Final Post
Influence – John Berger
Berger, I feel, has been an almost leading light in my piece in some way. His book Why Look at Animals has constantly been in the back of my mind whilst I have been constructing my cage. His token section is my favourite section of the book – as it is a clear explanation of zoos and has influenced the piece I have created immensely. Tokens in zoos are the painted walls, the false rocks, the toys, swings, and rock pools that are placed within an animal’s enclosure for them to live with. These tokens are seen to give the animal a much better quality of life (which if you really think about it – they probably do as it enriches their day). With my Confine cage piece, I wanted to include tokens that would enrich the homosapiens life that inhabited my piece. By including blankets and a pillow the inhabitant can build a bed of sleep in, they have a stuffed bear for company (I find it ironic that I thought of putting a toy bear in a human enclosure – toys have always played a large part in any one’s life, and although they may not be included in an actual homosapien enclosure the humour of placing a toy bear in the space had to be done. Other objects such as a puzzle to entertain the inhabitant and a book on animals have also been included. With my piece I want the viewer to feel like they are walking into their own enclosure as if they could inhabit the space and become the animal.
Influence – Artists
There are a few artists on my blog – and a lot more in my sketchbook – who have helped to guide me in some way through this last year of my degree to my final piece that is standing today. I still feel that the main three who have influenced me the most are Damien Hirst and the way that he encases animals and displays them, Bruce Nauman and his Double Steel Cage. this work influenced my decision to use bamboo and create bars within my piece as this has created a strong cage like feel to my final piece as the physical bars (be them covered by paper or not) make the viewer feel trapped and enclosed. Finally Cornelia Parker’s The Maybe where someone is a sleep in a case. This piece as informed my work a lot – firstly when I was going to have a performer in the piece for the entire private view, and also now, when I am allowing the viewer to be both the animal and the human.
Human Condition
The human condition is something that I haven’t written about on my blog a lot (if at all). The qualities of being a human is very important my work and will inform my work just by people being there and bringing their own thoughts and feelings to the piece.
The aspects of human life could be played out within my cage (hopefully they won’t be – but in a zoo setting they could) – birth, childhood, love, reproduction, aging and death are all aspects of the human condition and each can inform my work further and make my messages deeper and more meaningful I feel.
