the prestige of detonation

Right i am back in the library. Once again i arrive promptly and i'm the first one through the door. I hastily grab a pile of books and pick a well illuminated desk. Lets get into it

Gabriel Orozco


Orozco was an artist who had been recommended to me and elements of his practice certainly fit in with the type of work i am looking at. From the outset it must be stated that his practice is extremely diverse. Orozco works across a wide range of media and in a variety of ways. As such he has a body of work that is seemingly quite divergent. For instance works like the atomist sit alongside the yielding stone.

the yielding stone 1992

For my project it is the latter style of work that really interests me. The initial intervention is transitory in nature and the only record of it are the images taken by Orozco. For example the yielding stone involved Orozco pushing a ball of plasticine (equal to his weight) around New York. The only evidence of this were the photographs taken. So, as we were with Long, we rely on the photograph to inform us about the event.

Another similarity with Long, and one which i am very grateful for, is the role of the photograph is regularly discussed by Orozco and those commentating on his practice. After a few hours of reading it became clear that the photograph is used in a very particular way for specific reasons. For example Orozco suggests we are able to 'forget' the photograph and concentrate on the phenomenon itself. So in the image of the yielding stone it is not so much the photograph we consider but the act of rolling a giant ball of plasticine around New York. The simplicity of the shot certainly downplays the photograph and emphasises the act.

One of the most interesting statements was regarding how Orozco differentiates his work from 70's conceptual artists. For people like Smithson the photograph was very much a end point. It was the last relic of a work done elsewhere. In this case the images main function is as information. It tells us about what happened in a convenient, albeit greatly reduced, way: it is not a work in its own right. But Orozco gives the image equal status and his photographs should be seen as an individual piece of work and not the leftovers of something else. So with the yielding stone the initial intervention is done and all we have are the images. The simplicity of the images evokes this act without literally describing it. So the image privileges the act over the documentation and becomes more than just a record of an event.

Looking at Orozco was a genuinely exhilarating experience. This was partly because i had found some relevant information that will possibly feed into my dissertation. But so it was fascinating to see the photograph being used in such a carefully considered way amidst work that is playful and inspiring. A really good morning session.

Roland Barthes

Barthes is one theorist who comes up again and again. For years my brain has been trying to come to terms with his ideas regarding semiotics and this afternoon a few things finally clicked into place. No need to go into details otherwise you may never finish this page. But simply to say the asertion that the 'photograph is a message without a code' now makes sense to me. I know longer have to keep telling myself this stuff as i seem to actually understand it - finally.

So the afternoon was also pretty productive. It really is a good feeling to make progress and actually understand things that have long baffled you. I finished up satisfied with my days work and eager for more learning