Gaze of the Gorgon

In light of the comments in the KU emails today, here is a precis, nay a trace, of my research and reflections for today..............

Using words as triggers for my work.

Tony Harrison, what a guy!
He didn't just write Gaze of the Gorgon as a poem. It is a film-poem.
Stunning stuff to which I aspire. I have never made a video,
perhaps I should try?


Can a video be drawing?
Could I make a video in collaboration with a poet?


Harrison produces contemporary responses to public events that are made available via the media. These events form his core issues. Could these be my core issues also?

During the brainstorm on wednesday it was suggested that I examine the story about the cartoons and the prophet mohammed. This was in the context of 'destruction'. So many media stories are about 'destruction' in various contexts anyway, perhaps responding to media stories definately becomes my core issue? Certainly there are plenty of dissonant themes in the media, which is how I would describe the core issues of my recent work, pre KU anyhow.

Destruction, denyal (crossing-out or making illegible) and erasure are not my core issues. These are my working and drawing processes that are appropriate conduits for conveying ideas and meaning in my work. So perhaps I have come full circle here? Perhaps my core issues are man's inhumanity to man, my working method is to collect media stories, aphorisms, testimonies and other language/words (like poetry) to which I respond. During the making and drawing process I use destruction and erasure to assist in conveying my ideas? I still wish to remake work using the traces and residue from the destruction and erasure process although I feel strongly that the context and my intent must justify this element. More thinking to do......................................................................................................

Before I sign off here are a few of my favourite lines from Gaze of the Gorgon, deliciously assonantal and alliterative,


Before these Germans went to fight
they'd been beautiful to kiss.
This is the Kaiser's Gorgon choir
their petrification setting-in,
grunting to the barbed wire lyre
gagging on snags of Lohengrin.

(The narrator reads these lines against a backdrop of archive footage showing the mutilated faces of German soldiers.)

Scribbly ideas page from my logbook

I have spent the best part of an hour trying to get this image into my blog. Anyhow, I think I can do this now. The image to the left is from my logbook. It shows a few spontaneous ideas that came to me today during the class discussion. I was thinking about ways that participants could, well, er, participate in my work. I was also trying to think of artists who have done similar participatory events. I have noted Anthony Gormley but I cannot remember the name of the work. He got people and school kids to make little unglazed clay figures a bit like the terracotta army. There is another guy who got schoolkids to write on pebbles and then throw them back into the sea. I think this was called 1000000 pebbles. Then I was thinking about Gillian Wearing and the stuff she did like 'Dancing in Clapham' and the other famous piece, whose name I can't remember, where she took photos of people holding hand made signs. Anyway, thats where I'm at. Any suggestions out there in blogland???

Now I am just showing off. I like these little 'scrolls' and feel I could do something more significant with this process and format. I was reflecting on the drawing and making process of this piece and thought that it would lend itself to a participatory project. I just need to research for a core issue but participants could put their own drawings/ messages/ secrets/ confessions/ writings/ marks /???/ notes to the deceased/ wishes ??? onto strips of paper which cold then be rolled and constructed into a giant version of this work. It would then need to be destryed and re-made in some way. Still thinking about this......................................................................................................................................

February 8th 2006

February 8th 2006

Weblogs!!!! Like I haven’t got enough to do already.


Well, I have had time to reflect on this whist coming home on the train.

Yes, okay, it is a really good idea.
It is proactive, and I like that.
It is making me use technology (when I’d really rather not).
I could get my own students to do this! Now there’s an idea!


Reflection on Self-initiated Project ‘brainstorming session’.

Initial ideas for exploration.

Continue with Draw, Undraw, Re-draw; looking at erasure and destruction within a psychological context.

Examine the idea of an event, happening or performance linked to erasure. Think about public/audience participation. This process could be videoed. The work created would then be erased or destroyed in some way (?) and then re-made using the fragments or remnants.

Consider a collaboration with a poet or use existing poetry for inspiration. For example, Eliot’s Wasteland or Tony Harrison’s Gaze of the Gorgon.

Still interested in collecting the testimonies, stories and accounts of others as inspiration. I am aware that I need to do this within a specific context. This will be my core issue and is yet to be defined. I need to research, looking for cultural issues and dissonant themes appropriate to my working methods i.e erasure and destruction.

Combinations of any of the above?

When preparing my self-initiated proposal I must remember to include the following key points;

Using words as creative triggers.

Words of others relevant to core issue.

When combining words and images create a deliberate mis-match rendering interpretation as intentionally ambiguous or multi-layered.

Use erasure and/or destruction as a drawing tool to consciously create a psychologically disturbing context appropriate to the core issue.

Watch this space…… Core issue coming next.