billy-art-stuff

[billy-art-stuff]

Critical Annotation

My research uses ephemeral mediums to explore existential ideas of consciousness, dreams, and time, in public space. The images and quotes selected for this blog, while incredibly diverse, have common themes and relate to my research interest in a number of ways.

One key theme throughout these images is the realm of the transcendent. This is evident in the work of David Lynch, Mark Rothko, Richard Linklater, Maya Deren, and more. The realm of dreams, consciousness, and time, are all ephemeral and elusive ideas that can be explored through art. I use intangible mediums, such as projection art and music to explore these concepts, because I feel they are conceptually harmonious (Lawrence, 2010; Godoy, 2014; MacDonald, 2014; Deal, 1966).

Another theme is that of the concept of the self. I am not interested in exploring the self as existing as an unconscious, ‘true’ essence of being. Rather, I am interested in the elusiveness of existence and choose to focus on stories and experiences over identity-focused introspection. Some argue that the notion of identity is problematic as it automatically ‘others’ certain groups (Barad, 2014). However, others argue, from a spiritual standpoint, that expanding one’s ego will lead to the development of a ‘cosmic ego’ which would, in theory, elevate our shared awareness and connection to the collective unconscious (Maharishi, 1967, Dillbeck & Alexander, 1989). I do not have the answer to this dilemma, nor am I seeking one. This interest in deconstructing the self is evident across the work of Cindy Sherman, St. Vincent, Ingmar Bergman, David Lynch, Egon Schiele, Bruce Nauman, and others.

My interest in time is one that is still forming, and I am drawn to the way that Karen Barad describes that all matter is inextricably linked through time (Barad, 2018). What does this mean for consciousness and dreaming? How is consciousness related to time? I find these questions mirrored in Night on Earth, Una Pistola En Cada Mano, Lost Highway, and others.

I believe that the reason it is important to look outside of ourselves for inspiration is because this is how we expand our own walls of consciousness and deepen the integrity of our artistic endeavours. It is also how we can come to understand which ideas are already floating in the collective unconscious, and how we can learn to communicate with publics about these ideas. 

My research acknowledges public space as a site of ‘distributed sentience’ containing a multitude of ‘stories-so-far’ (Massey, 2005; Amin, 2015). How can art germinate this space with existential ideas of dreaming, consciousness, and time? As my Masters research draws on, I will find out more.

References

Amin, Ash. 2015. Public Culture 27, no. 2, 239-258. https://doi.org/10.1215/08992363-2841844

Barad, Karen. 2018. Karen Barad: Undoing the Future, online video, 1 hour 48 minutes. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMVkg5UiRog

Barad, Karen. 2014. “Diffracting Diffraction: Cutting Together Apart.” Parralax 20, no. 3, 168-187. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13534645.2014.927623

Deal, Borden. 1966. “The Function of the Artist: Creativity and the Collective Unconscious.” Southwest Review 50, no. 3, 239-253. https://www.jstor.org/stable/43467796

Dillbeck, M.C., & Alexander, C.N. 1989. Higher States of Consciousness: Maharishi Mahesh Yogi's Vedic Psychology of Human Development. Journal of Mind and Behaviour, 10(4), 307-334.

Godøy, R.I. 2014. “Ecological Constraints of Timescales, Production, and Perception in Temporal Experiences of Music.” Empirical Musicology Review, 9(3-4), 224-229.

Lawrence, G., & Baglioni, L. 2010. The Creativity of Social Dreaming. (1st ed.). Taylor & Francis.

MacDonald, S. 2014. “On Resonance in Contemporary Site-Specific Projection Art. A Journal of the Performing Arts.” 19(6), 64-70. DOI: 10.1080/13528165.2014.985101

Maharishi, M.Y. (Speaker). 1967. The Seven States of Consciousness [video lectures].

Massey, Doreen. 2005. For Space. 1st ed. SAGE Publications

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una pistola en cada mano - cesc gay (2012)

#una pistola en cada mano #cesc gay

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night on earth - jim jarmusch (1992)

#night on earth #jim jarmusch

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being john malkovich - spike jonze (1999)

#being john malkovich #spike jonze #charlie kaufman

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...dealing [with] the unconscious is also dealing with the infinite...

Gordon Lawrence, 2010

#gordon lawrence #the creativity of social dreaming

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humanz tour - gorillaz (2017)

#gorillaz #alexa drake

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mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios - pedro almodóvar (1988)

#pedro almodóvar #mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios

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be kind rewind - michel gondry (2008)

#michel gondry #be kind rewind

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synecdoche new york - charlie kaufman (2009)

#synecdoche new york #charlie kaufman

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slacker - richard linklater (1990)

#richard linklater #slacker

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untitled (red) - mark rothko (1956)

#mark rothko

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Successful art is that art which has found its way into the of the audience and made its home there, adding to the richness the depth of that mind.

Borden Deal, 1966

#borden deal

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waking life - richard linklater (2001)

#waking life #richard linklater

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twin peaks: the return - david lynch (2017)

#david lynch #twin peaks #twin peaks: the return #glastonbury grove

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live taped video corridor - bruce nauman (1970)

#bruce nauman

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st vincent - photographed by jeff hahne

#st vincent #annie clark

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patti smith at the chelsea hotel - robert mapplethorpe (unsure of year)

#patti smith #robert mapplethorpe #chelsea hotel