Visit To... The Tate Modern 2014

'Vision as reception
Vision as reflection
Vision as projection.'

Bill Viola, note 1986




I recently visited the Tate Modern, and came across 'Blindly', which I found particularly striking. Polish artist and film maker Artur Zmijewski had chosen to document scenes from a painting workshop with visually impaired participants, and in so doing directly addresses the challenges faced by people living with a disability, and captures the outcomes with stark honesty. Zmijewski rarely intervened during the process and left the participants free to express their own perceptions of the world. Watching this process made me think about the role visuality plays when producing art, and to what extent our eyes restrict our freedom in expression and imagination. In addition, this film was very politically charged, which also made me think about the way in which contemporary artists use art to deliver a powerful message relative to matters of a particular contemporary discourse.

Perfection Is My Border

These are few examples from a series I produced based around my exploration of what a border means to myself. The images in the centre are of people I feel I have borders with, which I have represented using masking tape, glue and ink. These are very experimental and abstract pieces which I feel I needed to produce as a way of breaking down my own borders of perfection. Music plays an important role in my life, and so while producing each piece I listened to a particular song. I feel this helped to unlock subconscious thought and influenced my mark making without my realising to fit with my thoughts and feelings toward the subject.  

When tackling the borders I have with myself, I chose to use the 'selfie', which radiates a false image of confidence and appeal. I wanted to contrast this image against the darker meaning behind the piece.

I would love to take this further by perhaps using an entire wall or larger canvas to produce similar work, and I would also like to try using melted wax as another means of conveying borders.

Exploring The Borders Within People

Borders
(CLICK LINK ABOVE)

After much thought, I was inspired to explore the borders within individuals. Thus, it came to me that having had the privilege to work with young people with mental illness through CAMHS (Child and Adolescent mental health service), I could provide a delicate insight into the emotional and psychological borders that are faced when overcoming a mental illness. In addition, I was most inspired and affected by the 'Catching Dreams' exhibition, which was a moving demonstration of the breaking of borders through self expression. And so, I produced a short piece of film using unedited footage featuring a friend of mine, who is also involved with CAHMS. The song Eleanor is singing she wrote herself, and relays her own emotional borders and the process of overcoming them. I chose a theatre setting in which to film the performance, for Eleanor is an actress and thus the theatre proves to be a source of strength. Contrastingly, I lit half of the theatre in darkness to serve as an embodied reminder of the internal borders we face. In terms of the furnishings, I chose to use blank wooden boxes to surround Eleanor to visually represent a border, which would contrast against her song of attempting to break free. Furthermore, I made the conscious decision to film from a single angle and leave the raw footage unedited, for I want the focus of the film to be Eleanor and the meaning of her song. In addition, I wanted to include any mistakes or imperfections during the filming process, such as a stumbling of words or the odd twang of the wrong string on the guitar, so as to further reinforce the concept of overcoming a border and celebrating the imperfect. Overall, I am pleased with the outcome of the film.

Walking Borders