Sound

 

                                                                     

Because of this focus on the hand and the sound one creates, I began to think of ways I could integrate this into my work. I decided to record the sounds in my surrounding space which would include both my places of residence; my lodgings in Limerick City and my home in Co. Cork.

Because I live in a busy, populated area of Limerick I presumed that there would be a great difference in the sound recordings and wanted to find a way of illustrating this contrast. I decided that I would record in each area and then translate the recordings into music notation. Afterwards I would associate different notes with different colours through the use of a chart similar to that of Kandinsky, consequently creating colourful illustrations.

 

Limerick City.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

County Cork.

 

 

 

 

 

Hands

 

                                                       
Therefore it is obvious that the hand is central to our movement in space, i.e how we sense our space.

It can also be central to the creation of the "atmosphere" within a space. For example, the hand is used in the creation of sound, a medium renound for evoking emotion. Here is an example of me playing the piano and through the movement of my hand, one can hear sound;

 

 

                      

Stelarc

While exploring the movement of the body I began to explore with interest the movement of the muscles in the hand, especially as it is central to how we function on a daily bass, hence how we move through our space.

One artist who I found very interesting in relation to this topic was the Australian performance artist, Stelarc. He has been extending his body through performances since the late 1960's. His performances include attaching a "third hand" to his body, extending himself into a virtual space with a virtual hand. Stelarc's artistic strategy resolves around the idea of "enhanceing the body" both in a physical and technical manner. Through Stelarcs work we reach a second level of existence where the body becomes the object for physical and technical experiments in order to discover its limitations. According to Stelarc, "technology is what defines the meaning of being human, it's part of being human. Especially living in the information age, thje body is biologically inadequate."

Antony Gormley

Through contextual research I found one artist particularly influential; This artist was Antony Gormley, winner of the Turner Prize, 1994. Much of his work depicts the human figure and his materials often employ the enironment in which they should be percieved through.
 
I found this a very interesting concept and one I could in time incorporate within my work. Here are some pieces which I enjoyed;



Clutch VI




Stand III




Settlement I




Feeling Material VIII




View I