I'm going where the cold wind blows : an exegesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts at Massey University, Wellington, New Zealand
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Date
2017
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Massey University
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Abstract
"What is time without conscious perception?
Quotidian spaces within seemingly lifeless environments we wouldn’t
typically think to consider, are brought to light, not for their potentially
sinister value, but for an appreciation of the fleeting traces of life. What
small events take place that define time passing? How do we affect what
we don’t consider? I am drawn to the calm of night-time, when what is
left behind, the traces, become the inhabitants of these urban settings. It
is what we leave behind that lingers.
An idea which I have been further developing during my MFA is the
notion of time-based photography, which has become the main drive of
the physical processing of my art practice. This concept in particular has
acted as an appliable medium which can be crafted to work with sound
or silence, projection, both photographic and time-based installation
and is experiential for the audience. Over the past three years I have
been conducting photographic studies of these sites within urban and
industrial settings, searching for mundane, generally non-specific,
anonymous sites that present interestingly lit structural, textural and
overall compositional properties.
The work I make comes from a basis of documentative nightscape
photography, while formally considering light, site, trace and time. With
introduced aspects of fiction and subtle augmentations of the imagery,
I simultaneously capture and create my experiences to be presented
I NT RODUCT ION
in an isolated, dramatised, distinctive viewing space. A large part of my
work, I have found, is more instinctive and spontaneous - looking for happy
coincidences. My research is centred around artworks and installations, film,
music, writing and experiences which I have been inspired by, the things
which I feel my work and interests resonate with and that I can often see
similarities to.
In July of this year I was part of a group that embarked on a European Fine
Arts Study Tour while three international art events were coinciding – this
only happens once a decade. 2017 was a special year too, as one of the
events, Documenta 14 was split between Athens and Kassel, Germany. The
tour began in Athens, then on to the Venice Biennale, followed by a short
visit to Berlin. The bulk of Documenta 14 was in Kassel and we finished at
Skulptur Projekte in Münster.
The tour lasted twenty-one days and involved viewing a large and diverse
range of artworks most days. As a result of this, I was able to see a lot of
work that I connected with, recording and researching as we went. This gave
me a huge range of compelling works to choose from to suit my exegesis,
and has heavily impacted on my practice as an artist, both conceptually
and in the physical making and installation processes. Now, more than half
of my artist research and the final imagery that I intend to work with was
found and made on that amazing tour. I feel that my artistic ability and self
awareness has gone through a sort of metamorphosis."--Introduction
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Keywords
W W A Hadwen, Criticism and interpretation, Photography, Artistic, Time and photography, Installations (Art), Research Subject Categories::HUMANITIES and RELIGION::Aesthetic subjects::Art