2011 PHOTO COMPETITIONS

After the first one - which involved drawing up a sign and pinning it to a tree, more for the gesture and the reality of it than anything else - I had to do more. As with any artistic endeavour, however, the initial work must be built on and surpassed. I had to do not only more, but better. So this time, I drew up five different signs, only one of which relied on an item being taped to it to make an impact. All were designed to provoke a unique feeling in whoever witnessed them.

In honour of my initial success, I started on the part of the Heath where Project 1 was installed. It was no longer there, but the four pins that held it were, along with the corners of it. Project 2 was first to go up. I was very nervous while doing it, in case I was discovered, for the words on it are both confrontational and flippant, implying that it's all just a big joke on the viewer by the artist. I was terrified I would be forced to explain myself. Nobody, however, appeared, but I was nonetheless forced to question what I was doing. Which is all part of the exercise. What am I doing? Why am I pinning notices to trees, instead of using my spare time in a more productive and profitable manner?

And this, of course, is what happens at the root of any artist, no matter their ability, no matter what the project, regardless of how experienced they are - the gnawing doubt that their work may be superfluous, unnecessary, a waste of time.

And yet, these are all steps, ever onward, toward better work. Without these initial experiments and forays in the only arena that matters - cold hard reality - greater work could not and could never exist. I do this in the hope that the art that I create improves, and the artist who creates will improve. Today felt odd - skulking round the Heath, avoiding other people and pinning up notices, and then taking photos of them - but it is to be hoped that the range of what I can do - my courage, my ability, etc - will be improved, if only incrementally.

Version 1 of the animation of a print edition; cyanotype under screen print on handmade paper
2010

Though appearing thin and fragile, the paper is very strong, capable of withstanding handling and weathering. The cyanotype image will fade in natural light over time, a chemical reaction characteristic of this photo process, but return if kept in the dark for a while. Additionally, if you look at the fifteen prints of this edition side-by-side, the cyanotype image underneath fades gradually from view, leaving skeletal traces and text. This edition is an animation, really, that questions both the assumption of a static edition and the viewer’s interaction with the installed piece, a printed object that alters itself.