|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
Artist statement -Chad Swanson When defining my approach to art, I think of what guided paleolithic humans during the genesis of humanity. Sometime in the paleolithic era, perhaps the first artists held up their hand to the cave wall, and spat out pigment to make a silhouette of their hands. In this moment, they realised that they could think because they realised they existed. Subsequently, when they painted animals around the silhouette of their hands, they were reflecting upon how their existence fitted into the existence of the animals they fed upon and the world around them. After they died, the art left a reminder to others that they once existed. In a way, art was their gateway to immortality. Although such creations were deeply personal experiences, they were valued by other members of the tribe. These members might have looked upon the creations, and through them they also felt those emotional triggers of their own existence. They felt their world had some meaning. They felt connected to a tradition. They felt that when loved ones died, they were not completely gone. Most importanly, when they put their own hand over the silhouette of a bygone artist, and looked at their hand over the silhouette, they were engaging in an intimate action that is uniquely human. Since that time, art has existed in every known human community. It has existed in the trenches war, in the solitude of prison systems, as part of the training regimes of the samurai and in the harems of emperors. No matter the conditions, art has prevailed. Of course, it is impossible to be sure about what went on in the mind of Palaeolithic humanity, or the minds of Samurai preparing for battle, but art provides scope for imagination and, perhaps, scope for accessing the theorised archetypes that we inherited from those who have gone before. I see art as a bridge between time and people, and also as a product of the curiosity in the unknown. No other animal creates art, and no other animal uses art to symbolically connect themselves to others who are absent. To stand in the same room as a painting by Vincent Van Gogh has a special feeling, not only because of the emotion of the painting, but also because it is the same canvas as the great man once touched. This socially constructed meaning, and the dialogue associated with it, is where the true value of art resides. Because of my appreciation for the social role of art, I believe the audience needs to be given some consideration when exhibiting. While the creative process is for the self, the display is for others and once art is unveiled to the public, it gains a life that is independent of the artist. This is not something to be feared, but merely another dimension that adds to the unpredictability that makes showing work so enjoyable. Admittedly, I don't always agree with everyone's reaction to the work. The most common criticism I receive of my work is that I am too intellectual in my approach. While I agree art has a place to make people feel, it also has a role to play in making people think. Furthermore, my intellectual approach is a by-product of my interest in the explorations and knowledge of humanity. I am interested in theology, psychology, technology, sociology, physics, history, politics, philosophy, economics and as I read through such genres, I have a cognitive, moral and emotional response to them. Art is a way of exploring my responses and putting them up for reflection by people who likewise want to think, feel and discuss. In regards to my criticisms of others, I am always disappointed when I encounter people who say things like "I am an artist, I am not good on computers" or "I am an artist, I am not a good writer." Such people offend my own identity as an artist because they seem to be saying that being an artist is an excuse not to be good at things, to be lazy and not to challenge the self. In truth, creativity is an apex skill that is built upon other skills such as remembering, applying, analysing and evaluating. It is the whole that is more than the sum of its parts, but is nevertheless dependent upon its parts. Because art is built on other skills, rather than being a subsitute to them, the true artists are the ones that challenge themselves in every discipline they encounter. I see the desire to learn and to challenge the self as the moral imperative of the artist. In their art, the artists bring their other skills and knowledge together to go beyond what they know and understand. Because of my belief in art as an apex skill, I see artists everywhere. I see them in architecture companies designing new buildings, in vineyards forming a relationship with the environment around them, in software companies conceiving possibilities of the future or out bush making new meaning out of traditional cultural stories. I see the true artists as those people who explore new territory, be that in an intellectual realm or in an emotional realm. When I likewise challenge myself, I feel an affinity with these people, just as I feel an affinity with those caveman who held up their hands to the wall and spat out pigment. Although they are long gone, through their actions they changed the direction of humanity and through their art, we can feel that part of them still lives with us today.
Quotes I identify with
Anaïs Nin: "I postpone death by living, by suffering, by error, by risking, by giving, by losing" Brett Whitely: Francisco de Goya: Erich Fromm: George Braque: James Baldwin: Richard Flannigan: Jürgen Habermas: Cui Jian: Confucius: " True wisdom is to know the extent of one’s ignorance. "
|
||||||||||||||||||||
