Circle Back

Yesterday, a conversation having nothing to do with art reminded of a piece that I made in 2003. Match was a drawing made using graphite and tearing, folding out and securing paper with black acrylic paint.

At the time, I had been experimenting with graphite and folding to loosen my approach, and had been looking at Marca-Relli's Seated Figure at the Art Institute, his smoke drawings, and Balla's Dynamism of a Dog on a Leash, among others. How much picture space (distinguished from sculptural forms physically extending out from the paper) and sense of movement (distinguished from actual motion) could folded and pressed paper achieve? The variation in edge quality and degree of softness/hardness was essential.

In contrast, uniformly hard edges in my current material present an obstacle to elements finding the the outer boundaries of their objectness. I need to experiment with strategies to soften them, and looking back at the older work gives me some idea of places to start.

Circling back leads me to consider an image that comes from behind to the front of an the image and circle back again, not so concealed yet not too apparent, all relatively flat. Unlike Match, which has no side view, the extent to which a side view can draw and hold interest is a hurdle to realizing the integration of the images into a successful piece, unless I can fully resolve the side view or make it inconsequential to the viewing experience.