My work is largely concerned with the relationship between man and nature. In order to explore this I have been trying to establish my own relationship with the landscape that surrounds me. Coming from a rural background, the interconnected nature of the relationship between us and the land we inhabit, has always been made clear to me. As Kenneth S. Friedman states:
“it is the total environment (social, political, economic, cultural and natural) that affects our relationship to ‘nature and ecology’… Given that human beings and their culture are in the largest scale of description a form of life moving about and acting on the surface of the planet, the drilling of an oil company is as much part of the ‘environment’ as a tree…”[1]
I deal with the use of natural resources in my work and focus on a particular area where I live that has seen iron ore mining and cultivated forestry. The devastating impact has left a visible trace on the landscape. I am interested in the idea of how activities such as these change the face of the landscape and have done since the first interventions made by early settlers. This also conjures up thoughts of wilderness and the definition of man made in relation specifically to the Irish landscape.
“What we see is neither ‘wild,’ nor ‘natural’ but one of the most wrought canvases upon which humans have worked.”[2]
I explore the proof and impact of human interaction within the landscape through a largely drawing based practice. In the beginning stages of my research this took the form of sketching and taking photographs whilst repeatedly walking in the landscape. This took on a semi ritualistic aspect in its repetition and the sketches sometimes reflected this as well as operating as a tool for observation and recording. This idea of ritual continues to underpin my work, whether paper based or installation. Richard Long is an obvious inspiration as he has a strongly embodied relationship to the landscape within which he works. He leaves visible traces of his various journeys and it is this lingering proof of human activity that interests me (c.f. ‘A Line Made by Walking’ 1967). He too uses the materials he finds to create work in the environment, creating discernible objects or singular monuments of creation, devoid of external contexts. However, Long also takes his work into a gallery setting; this complication arising from spatial loci interests me as I contemplate my own work in a studio space.
I have focused on a particular site in the Antrim hills at the foot of Slievenanee Mountain and my work deals specifically with that sense of place. I also play with 3D objects and installation, which serve to signify the physical aspect of the themes I investigate. The mining industry which took place in this area between the late 19th century to mid-20th century, had not only a massive impact on the landscape, but informed much of the socio-economic history of this area and its inhabitants. I feel the interwoven nature of the relationship between man and the environment is demonstrated in this fact. It was important to have my work rooted in this area not only through tangible, physical objects but the use of actual pieces of earth in my work as well. I collect rock and earth from the mines and use them in my pieces as drawing tools or paint pigment. I use these natural materials as found or grind them into a powder to use as watercolour or mix them with oil. I enjoy this almost primal and physical process of selecting and removing the natural material and then manipulating it to create something new.
Introducing physical representation of the area raised questions for me in terms of taking parts of the landscape into a studio/gallery setting. This process is informed by the work and writings of Robert Smithson who indicates that by drawing we create a “logical two dimensional picture,”[3] which differs from a natural/realistic picture, as it is an allegory or metaphor.
“The Non-Site (an indoor earthwork) is a three dimensional logical picture that is abstract, yet it represents an actual site… it is by this three dimensional metaphor that one site can represent another site which does not resemble it – thus The Non-Site.”[4]
The idea of taking parts of the landscape and displaying them is also tied to the ritualistic aspect of my work. There has almost always been a link between objects of meaning and ritualistic practices, whether they served to visualize spiritual matter or attribute power to a representation of a spiritual being or practice. The role of power, meaning and knowledge is important also, characterising the relationship between the individual and the natural world. Drawing as a process can be considered in this light; it too is a tool used to observe and gain knowledge of a subject through extensive looking. The physicality of drawing is also important. I am interested in the physical transformation of a natural material once it is extracted from the environment and made into many different things. Using earth as a drawing medium is an extension of this transformative extraction.
My practice examines the decontextualisation of objects once they are brought into the studio. I am curious as to how this might give the objects new significance and meaning. Is the ‘white cube’ gallery full of decontextualized objects, or does this form of display transform and attribute meaning to objects? Perhaps the process serves a capitalist society in its current attitude towards objectification? These questions underpin my processes. The ‘white cube’ environment of my exhibition is another opportunity to reflect upon these issues.
[1]Wallis, B; Kastner, J (1998) ‘Land and Environmental Art’ London, Phaidon pp.196
[2] Howes M. O’Neill K. (2003)“Toward a History of the Irish Landscape” Eire/Land, Ed. Vera Krielkamp, McMullen Museum of Art, Boston College
[3] Smithson, R (1996) ‘Robert Smithson: The Collected Writings’ ed. Jack Flam, University of California Press pp.364
[4] Smithson, R (1996) ‘Robert Smithson: The Collected Writings’ ed. Jack Flam, University of California Press pp.364
“it is the total environment (social, political, economic, cultural and natural) that affects our relationship to ‘nature and ecology’… Given that human beings and their culture are in the largest scale of description a form of life moving about and acting on the surface of the planet, the drilling of an oil company is as much part of the ‘environment’ as a tree…”[1]
I deal with the use of natural resources in my work and focus on a particular area where I live that has seen iron ore mining and cultivated forestry. The devastating impact has left a visible trace on the landscape. I am interested in the idea of how activities such as these change the face of the landscape and have done since the first interventions made by early settlers. This also conjures up thoughts of wilderness and the definition of man made in relation specifically to the Irish landscape.
“What we see is neither ‘wild,’ nor ‘natural’ but one of the most wrought canvases upon which humans have worked.”[2]
I explore the proof and impact of human interaction within the landscape through a largely drawing based practice. In the beginning stages of my research this took the form of sketching and taking photographs whilst repeatedly walking in the landscape. This took on a semi ritualistic aspect in its repetition and the sketches sometimes reflected this as well as operating as a tool for observation and recording. This idea of ritual continues to underpin my work, whether paper based or installation. Richard Long is an obvious inspiration as he has a strongly embodied relationship to the landscape within which he works. He leaves visible traces of his various journeys and it is this lingering proof of human activity that interests me (c.f. ‘A Line Made by Walking’ 1967). He too uses the materials he finds to create work in the environment, creating discernible objects or singular monuments of creation, devoid of external contexts. However, Long also takes his work into a gallery setting; this complication arising from spatial loci interests me as I contemplate my own work in a studio space.
I have focused on a particular site in the Antrim hills at the foot of Slievenanee Mountain and my work deals specifically with that sense of place. I also play with 3D objects and installation, which serve to signify the physical aspect of the themes I investigate. The mining industry which took place in this area between the late 19th century to mid-20th century, had not only a massive impact on the landscape, but informed much of the socio-economic history of this area and its inhabitants. I feel the interwoven nature of the relationship between man and the environment is demonstrated in this fact. It was important to have my work rooted in this area not only through tangible, physical objects but the use of actual pieces of earth in my work as well. I collect rock and earth from the mines and use them in my pieces as drawing tools or paint pigment. I use these natural materials as found or grind them into a powder to use as watercolour or mix them with oil. I enjoy this almost primal and physical process of selecting and removing the natural material and then manipulating it to create something new.
Introducing physical representation of the area raised questions for me in terms of taking parts of the landscape into a studio/gallery setting. This process is informed by the work and writings of Robert Smithson who indicates that by drawing we create a “logical two dimensional picture,”[3] which differs from a natural/realistic picture, as it is an allegory or metaphor.
“The Non-Site (an indoor earthwork) is a three dimensional logical picture that is abstract, yet it represents an actual site… it is by this three dimensional metaphor that one site can represent another site which does not resemble it – thus The Non-Site.”[4]
The idea of taking parts of the landscape and displaying them is also tied to the ritualistic aspect of my work. There has almost always been a link between objects of meaning and ritualistic practices, whether they served to visualize spiritual matter or attribute power to a representation of a spiritual being or practice. The role of power, meaning and knowledge is important also, characterising the relationship between the individual and the natural world. Drawing as a process can be considered in this light; it too is a tool used to observe and gain knowledge of a subject through extensive looking. The physicality of drawing is also important. I am interested in the physical transformation of a natural material once it is extracted from the environment and made into many different things. Using earth as a drawing medium is an extension of this transformative extraction.
My practice examines the decontextualisation of objects once they are brought into the studio. I am curious as to how this might give the objects new significance and meaning. Is the ‘white cube’ gallery full of decontextualized objects, or does this form of display transform and attribute meaning to objects? Perhaps the process serves a capitalist society in its current attitude towards objectification? These questions underpin my processes. The ‘white cube’ environment of my exhibition is another opportunity to reflect upon these issues.
[1]Wallis, B; Kastner, J (1998) ‘Land and Environmental Art’ London, Phaidon pp.196
[2] Howes M. O’Neill K. (2003)“Toward a History of the Irish Landscape” Eire/Land, Ed. Vera Krielkamp, McMullen Museum of Art, Boston College
[3] Smithson, R (1996) ‘Robert Smithson: The Collected Writings’ ed. Jack Flam, University of California Press pp.364
[4] Smithson, R (1996) ‘Robert Smithson: The Collected Writings’ ed. Jack Flam, University of California Press pp.364