26 November 2012
Your work made me think of resistance, opacity, and form.
--Email to Richard van der Aa
The exhibition Opaque Transparency is the result of a discussion during a time when I was just discovering the artwork that Richard van der Aa is passionate about, and promoted through ParisCONCRET. More specifically, our discussion revolved around a particular type of work in which there is a blurring of typical definitions. Conditions that are often taken for granted such as picture plane, frame, form, image, and medium are slightly altered so that we, as viewers, become aware of them again. I found this artwork to be fascinating—and to be resistant. Richard was interested in that particular adjective and much of our communication since then has touched on ways that the art of Opaque Transparency is resistant.
My first thought concerning the work is that it resists signification, but it may be more that the work does not communicate in a way that I expect. There is a distinct lack of presence of the maker; or rather, the artist is only present in basic formal decisions of construction. To be sure the artwork is fastidiously designed. The work exudes perfection, but instead of the trace of the artist’s hand there is the natural characteristic of the materials presented in surrogate. This distance of the artist, and his or her message, makes the production of meaning slower and resistant. This requires more effort on the end of the viewer.
The next point of resistance is that the artwork is neither window frame or object, but a unique combination of both, so as viewers we are unsure how to apprehend it. There is enough texture or irregularity of surface and frame to disrupt the illusion of a window to another world. However, the vertical plane is present, and the work is displayed on a wall so that we are continually prompted to read the work after the Renaissance model. What’s more, standing in place of an image we are presented with material, texture, and opacity. The denial of a “regular” image reminds the viewer that he or she is present, in a body, in a space, looking at a trigger that points back only to the present moment, resisting the urge of the viewer to think of something else.
All of this resistance may make it seem that the artwork of Opaque Transparency is not worth the trouble to consider. I would suggest that it is precisely because of resistance that the artwork becomes valuable and intriguing. As viewers, we experience the work in a way that is not prescribed. We become more aware of the art object and feel the creative intention of the artist. The artwork has presence and we are drawn to it. This brings us to the last point of resistance, that the artwork provides an experience that distinctly contrasts the contemporary daily experience. Most of us spend our time, especially leisure time, consuming media in ever more convenient ways. Art objects with quiet content that provide a perceptual or intellectual challenge are a refreshing alternative to overstated messages and corporate imagery.
Roland Thompson
Your work made me think of resistance, opacity, and form.
--Email to Richard van der Aa
The exhibition Opaque Transparency is the result of a discussion during a time when I was just discovering the artwork that Richard van der Aa is passionate about, and promoted through ParisCONCRET. More specifically, our discussion revolved around a particular type of work in which there is a blurring of typical definitions. Conditions that are often taken for granted such as picture plane, frame, form, image, and medium are slightly altered so that we, as viewers, become aware of them again. I found this artwork to be fascinating—and to be resistant. Richard was interested in that particular adjective and much of our communication since then has touched on ways that the art of Opaque Transparency is resistant.
My first thought concerning the work is that it resists signification, but it may be more that the work does not communicate in a way that I expect. There is a distinct lack of presence of the maker; or rather, the artist is only present in basic formal decisions of construction. To be sure the artwork is fastidiously designed. The work exudes perfection, but instead of the trace of the artist’s hand there is the natural characteristic of the materials presented in surrogate. This distance of the artist, and his or her message, makes the production of meaning slower and resistant. This requires more effort on the end of the viewer.
The next point of resistance is that the artwork is neither window frame or object, but a unique combination of both, so as viewers we are unsure how to apprehend it. There is enough texture or irregularity of surface and frame to disrupt the illusion of a window to another world. However, the vertical plane is present, and the work is displayed on a wall so that we are continually prompted to read the work after the Renaissance model. What’s more, standing in place of an image we are presented with material, texture, and opacity. The denial of a “regular” image reminds the viewer that he or she is present, in a body, in a space, looking at a trigger that points back only to the present moment, resisting the urge of the viewer to think of something else.
All of this resistance may make it seem that the artwork of Opaque Transparency is not worth the trouble to consider. I would suggest that it is precisely because of resistance that the artwork becomes valuable and intriguing. As viewers, we experience the work in a way that is not prescribed. We become more aware of the art object and feel the creative intention of the artist. The artwork has presence and we are drawn to it. This brings us to the last point of resistance, that the artwork provides an experience that distinctly contrasts the contemporary daily experience. Most of us spend our time, especially leisure time, consuming media in ever more convenient ways. Art objects with quiet content that provide a perceptual or intellectual challenge are a refreshing alternative to overstated messages and corporate imagery.
Roland Thompson