Whilst researching Bruce Nauman’s work I was drawn to his installation, Get Out of My Mind, Get Out of This Room. What drawn me to this piece in particular was the intimacy when the viewer is in the room. Nauman’s voice is the main element in the piece, the tone of his voice changes whilst someone is in the room. Based on the intimate feeling of being in a closed space, using elements of this idea could perhaps become an idea of a final work.
My dissertation discussed how artists from the last century use sound in their work. Kandinsky’s Composition VII, 1913 was the main focus on my first chapter talking about the movement and colour of paint and how was synaesthesia used in his work, all about the viewer’s response to the visual paint. My second chapter was about how John Cage composed his silent piece 4’33”, 1952, through chance operations and also the viewer’s reaction. I liked how Cage placed an artistic piece into a musical environment. My final chapter was on Nauman’s sound work including his exhibition Raw Materials, 2004; talking about what the difference is between a performance and an installation? For Nauman the environment where the sounds would be heard was a big part of the process, and the response to ambient noises around the area; there is no visual object to be seen, just hearing voices.
