Category: Thoughts and Reflections
-
“Architecture of a Puddle”: A Reflection on Nature and the Built Environment
The genesis of ‘Architecture of a Puddle’ lies in an intriguing idea I once came across in a book, whose title eludes me now. It discussed how puddles, often seen as unwanted by-products of infrastructure, are in fact reflections of decisions made in the built environment. This concept fascinated me, suggesting that puddles are not…
-
“It does not illustrate. It is the sensation of its own realization.”
RIP Cy Twombly Each line was “the actual experience” of making the line. Could Twombly be thought of as a Phenomenological painter? I’ll admit, when I lived in Philadelphia, my least favorite room in the art museum there was the Cy Twombly room. It was hard to appreciate. But nowadays, I almost view Twombly’s work…
-
Playing around with the computer program “Corel Draw.” I was reminded of this program by an old friend. I remember using it ten years ago. Hopefully I can bring it into my work flow for painting OR design work. No need to try and photograph this well… as it emits light instead of reflecting it. Painting by…
-
Landscape Perception and Inhabiting Vision: Practising to see from the inside
From the recent archives, I thought it would be good to post my dissertation from Dartington. Download the pdf of Landscape Perception and Inhabiting Vision. The Abstract: In this dissertation I investigate vision and landscape through painting. I identify landscape as a diverse and lively critical field of study as I have come to understand…
-
A new place for the blog
I’ve moved the blog from the front page. I think having it on the front page was giving me writer’s block. So here is an informal aside.
-
Representation of Space in Space
I’ve been reading Edward Soja’s Thirdspace (1996) and Postmodern Geographies (1989) and Perceptions of the Environment (2000) by Tim Ingold. “Space hides consequence from us now.” (Berger in Soja 1989 p.22) Space does hide consequence from those who have power.. We throw out rubbish and it goes ‘somewhere.’ We use electricity that comes from ‘somewhere.’ …
-
Show Time Again. The Countdown Begins.
It is roughly 100 days until the MA show here at the Dartington Campus of the University College Falmouth. It is a very strange experience—the Dartington Campus will move to the main college at the end of the year. There is a definitive sense of a winding down of place happening here that is both…
-
Cosgrove on Landscape Painting
One of the consistent purposes of landscape painting has been to present an image of order and proportioned control… there is an inherent conservatism in the landscape idea, in its celebration of property and of an unchanging status quo, in its suppression of tensions between groups in the landscape. (Cosgrove, 1985, p. 58, original emphasis)…
-
Disembodied and Engaged Aesthetics
As a painter in a Master’s course for Arts and Ecology, I am to produce a written work that attempts to synthesize my interests. My hope is to hash out ideas and get my writing chops up right here on this page. I had recently read Aesthetics & Nature, and wrote briefly about aesthetics. Aesthetics…
-
Pirate Utopia in the Presence of High Way Desolation
Last night, in Philadelphia, I fell into a Pirate Utopia entirely enabled by the construction of I-95. It was 2 a.m. in the morning and we played music loud with the front door open. The rest of the buildings on the block had long since crumbled away from the negative effect of the huge berm…
-
Grad School?
I want to go. I am researching schools and programs for the next few months. If you have any suggestions that you think I should know about, please leave me a comment! Superficially, I am interested in applying to Tyler School of Art, Yale, and Upenn. I’d like to find a program that is receptive…