ARTISTSTATEMENT:ShannenVinent,ph014362.

Whatifweweretoconsiderpaintingasitsownlanguage,andconsiderhowdifferentmediumsandmaterialsspeakdifferentlanguages?Ithusbegantoresearchintothematerialityandfluidityofpainting.Executedbyfocusingontheconversationthatariseswhenquestioninghowdifferentthinningmediumsaffecttheaestheticqualitiesofacrylicpaint.BytakingonaZombieFormalistapproachIultimatelyconcludedthatmydefinitionof’aesthetics’isinfluencedbytheart-marketandthevalueplacedonhigh-art,specificallyinrelationtoabstractpainting.Myworkemploysacrylicpouringtechniques[1].Eachpaintingismadeofuniquecombinationsofthinningmediums[2]addedtoacrylicpainttotestthedifferentproperties,andthusthedifferentlanguagespokenbyeachmedium.InmyexperimentationIcombineddifferentpouringtechniques,withdifferentthinningmediums,ofdifferentratios,ondifferentsurfaces[3].Iendedupwithatotaloftwenty-sixartworksbutonlytwentyuniquecombinationsoftechniquesandmaterials.Aestheticswereacrucialinfluenceinmywork.Whendefiningapaintingas‘aesthetic’I’magreeingitmeetsoneorbothoftwoqualities;‘beauty’,anartworkthatevokesa

senseofpleasure,or‘theagreeable’,anartworkthatevokesavisceralsense.However‘aesthetics’arehighlysubjective.WhenreferringtoaestheticsI’mbasingitonpersonaljudgment.Toconsiderapaintingasaestheticthereisacriteriathepaintinghadtoadheretoformetodeemitassuccessful.Paintingshadtoshowacleardifferenceincolour.Iwasspecificallyinterestedintheareaswherethesetwo,(three,four…)coloursinteractedtogetherbutstillremainedseparate.Thisisseeninthedisplayedpaintings.Idiscardedthepaintingscreatedduringtheexperimentationalprocessthatdidnotmeetthedescribedcriteria.Tobeabletounderstandthelanguagespokenbyeachpaintingthedisplayofmyworkhadtobecoherentlysectioned.Ithereforedecidedtoorganizethepaintingsintodifferentgroupsseparatedalongfivedifferentshelves;eachshelfholdingdifferentpaintingscreatedbythesamemediums[4].Althoughthepaintingsdisplayedonthesameshelfdifferedineitherorbothpouringtechniqueand/orsurfaceused.TheideatouseshelveswasinspiredbyascienceMuseum[5]IvisitedasIfeltitwouldprovideanexperiment-likeaestheticwhichspokedirectlytomymethodologicalprocessofcreation.Thepurposeoftheshelf,however,wasn’ttooffersupportconsideringeachindividualpaintingwasindependentlyattachedtothewall.Theshelveswereinsteadusedtoprovideavisualcueastohowthepaintingsshouldberead.WhenattachingeachpaintingtothewallIhadtotakeintoconsiderationtheuniquesurfaceofeachpainting.ThisthereforeinfluencedthewayIattachedmypaintingstothewall.DuringmyresearchIalsocameacrossGermanartistKerstinBrätschandwasparticularlyfondofhermarblingwork[6].Sheinvestigatedpaintingasalanguage,drawntothepowerofmisunderstoodlanguage-whetherthatlanguagebeEnglish,German,painting,orspecificmediums.Understandingherwork,whichheldsimilaritiestomine,helpedmearticulatetheideasinfluencingmyart.WORDCOUNT:500BLOG:https://shannenvinent.wordpress.com

1. a)CleanPourTechnique:Therequiredratiosofdifferentcolouredpaintandmediumsarepouredintodifferentcups.Thecoloursofthinnedpaintarethenpouredindividuallyontoasurface.Thesurfaceisthentiltedtospreadthepaint.b)DirtyPourTechnique:Therequiredratiosofdifferentcolouredpaintandmediumsarepouredintothesamecup.Thecoloursofthinnedpaintarethenpouredsimultaneouslyontoasurface.Thesurfaceisthentiltedtospreadthepaint.c)CentreSwipeTechnique:SimilartoCleanPourTechniquebutapapertowel/tissuepaperisusedtospreadthepaint.

2. PVAGlue,Water,FairyLiquid,Liquitex,Turpentine,CoconutMilk.3. ThreedifferentvariationsofCardboard,Foam,Canvas,Fabric.4. Shelf1:Liquitex+CoconutMilk.

Shelf2:Turpentine+FairyLiquid.Shelf3:Turpentine+FairyLiquid+CoconutMilk.Shelf4:PVAGlue+Water.Shelf5:PVAGlue+Water+FairyLiquid.

5. ColeMuseumofZoology,UniversityofReading,WhitenightsCampus.6. TheUnstableTalismanicRenderingexhibitedatGavinBrown,NewYorkinJune

2014.

FOOTNOTES