responses







AARON MATHESON, participating artist, on the process of making his work in connection to his partner's written process:

The joey is an alien: very 'other' in its anatomy but sufficiently similar to humans (in its hairlessness) to be disturbing.

“Skinned” I took as a metaphor rather than literally; about looking below the surface at the underlying anatomy, and at the reality of death. I tried to be as unflinching as I could. As I drew the facts of these decaying bodies dancing with flies I became interested in their beauty and no longer repelled.

However, I felt an increasing dissatisfaction that this little form was its end: I had an intuitive sense that this body wasn't the sum of its life nor the home of continuing consciousness. There was more, not to be found here, but something lighter, more diffuse, more sparkling: an ineffable substance or consciousness. I recognised this as “The Thing becomes the Thing”, where the true nature of the alien is revealed by dissection (the knife) and sensory analysis: My experience of how things continue. This I explored in drawing 3.

Martin's description acted for me as an alternate way of interpreting my existing process.
His description has surgical-room metaphors and is distinctly unsentimental. So I endeavoured to see clearly my own revulsion to a clinical gaze on death, and find anew what my views about death are. Ultimately I don't know what happens: Just as I don't know what's really happening in life: With both I aspire to have a sense of reverence for their mystery.

ANNA JAANISTE, project devisor / co-ordinator, and participating artist:


This project came about as one of those fleeting “what-if” ideas that I decided to actually follow up on. And here are the results!

It was a fascinating process to receive and compile everyone’s written processes, and I was struck by both the (seemingly contradictory) universal and highly individual approaches of each artist. A core concept that came up over and over is that the artwork has a life and momentum of its own. In terms of working processes, it seems a shared experience amongst the artists, in improvising, is the setting up of a space, within which there can occur a “free-for-all” process of unleashed creation, and often some sort of self-reflective, refining process. How each artist goes about these various stages is as individual and mysterious as life itself, but we have been given some glimpses into those processes here. It is in fact an extremely rare thing to hear artists talk so personally, intimately and specifically about the process of making art. 

As I started to make work following my partner’s written process, I felt a sort of surge of liberation, like starting to plunge down a wet slippery dip. It felt great to surrender myself to the space the words created in my imagination, as they danced themselves around each other and opened into possibilities. Then as I continued to make the work, I felt a play between the strong momentum of my own natural flow of creation, and the material instructions by my side, which I checked in with every now and then, like a percussive tool.


It was somehow very touching to listen to my partner Nick's sound piece, and to hear some of my language coming through - the simple submersion in sensory/sensual experience, and a layered-ness of simultaneous existence.

I was thrilled by the various senses of collaboration and open intent that were unveiled during the exhibition night and performances. The senses of connection and play, of meeting and flow between the artists, their processes and their work were palpable. The atmosphere was electric and the audience members were equally inspired. Now that’s what I call art.




ENRIQUE DEL VAL, participating artist, on his experience of the exhibition and live performances:


As the night was going by and I was investigating the artworks, and the performances were happening, I felt an increasing sense between the dynamics of the works, the texts and the project as a whole. It hit me, the fact that different people were experiencing and describing similar things during their creative processes which were articulated in their own way. That was uplifting for me: to find out about the common denominator. I will hope for Art Cross Process Project to have a continuation in some form or another in the future.


FELICITY WHEELER, participating artist, on the process of following her partner's process:


The experience of using someone else's process found me in a new place for making. I felt free and liberated in my own process of dance improvisation by using someone else's process. Any self consciousness, self analysis, self doubt, was replaced by a desire to respond and follow faithfully someone else's prescribed process. I found new ways to respond to space, time, audience and environment by following this process, and the outcomes of the improvisation were different to things that I have done before. I responded more consciously to the space, looking for opportunities to improvise with what I found around me as generators of my own movement response. It was deeply satisfying and will inform the way I approach my own process in the future - freedom from the norm. Amen.


FELICITY WHEELER, participating artist, on perceiving the work made by her partner:


Initially, when I viewed the sculpture made using my process, I didn't process much. But when I thought about it in days to come, I could see the circle of energy established in the steel ring. I could feel the feet firmly planted and grounding the work in the steel plates welded to the base. And I could appreciate the conscious engagement with, and making overt, the process of breathing and extending the breath out through the work in the activation of the breathing with the bicycle pump and the visual element of hte smoke from the cigarette sending the breath out into the room. The x-ray of lungs illuminating the work was further evidence of the osmosis of breathing at the heart of the process. I was interested that I did not perceive this initially, and delighted as the awareness of this came to me.

The whole event was a delight and I am very grateful to have been invited to participate.

GIANNI WISE, participating artist, on the collaborative experience of this project:

I made my work with a level of scepticism - as I was making it, I actually thought that it would fail. The mental process went something like this: collaboration is fabulous but look, really, it's not something that we make public. It's something we cannot control so why would we expose ourselves and our raw egos to this? (Etc.) And then my resistance only started softening when I just followed my partner Katya's process instructions. It was to follow a CD with nearly an hour of yoga asana meditation instructions by this wild Indian guru. At first his crazy accent sent me into fits of distracted laughter. Resistance again. It took 3 attempts for me to let go - to release me from my bound up artist ego - just enough for me to feel some pain of the death of some close family members over the last few years. I dug around inside my tight emotional centre and found a way to go. A way to mourn and recognise where my resistance was. 
The skeptic was only really laid to rest when we all got together. I really found such an illogical and fascinating connection between Katyas and my artwork. Memory, family and perhaps histories? Hard to articulate. 
thanks


MARIE DALLISTON, audience member, on the exhibition and live performances: 


I enjoyed the evening it was  really something fresh , interesting and special .
I thought the (obscure) location was perfect... my husband and I who usually have some troubles finding addresses and sometimes get in heated confrontations. I loved the adventure. I immediately felt I was on some underground art movement or reality tv show..."The Secret Life of Art."
I have a very emotional inner life. So I was turned on straight away, curious, and ready to receive.  A great arrival to a event.  What happens next?
I explored the works and was so surprised at the various disciplines.
I asked  the young  5-year old  Maika how to use the small nano music ipod, and felt I too was also collaborating... Part of something.
Enrique's drawing was a paper marked with musical notes lifting out across the room like the acoustics sounds of the guitar.
The Tap and Sax was like a friendly conversation between two young men posturing their manhood. With a jaunty competiveness.
Then we were all ushered onto the next large square space and we waited quietly.  Felicity moved around the hard grungy garage floor with animal and child-like abandoned movements. Mixed with many other familar poses and rhythms, I was transported onto the floor with her, feeling the range of sensations... both playful and unpleasant.


MARIE DALLISTON addressing Aaron in relation to his work:


I am coming from an emotional assault by your images... 
I couldn't see the lines and marks...
I was totally overwhelmed by this enormous subject. I was stunned .
And then my next step was to try and make sense of it. A narrative... intellectualise it. 
Humour  it. Protect my self. 
The contrast of going to an enjoyable event, with the poignant reminder that we are only here in each and every moment.  A jolt.
My response was all about the subject of the death of mother and off-spring. Their time violently halted.
Its a subject not dwelt upon. A tragedy of  Mother and Baby, always sacred. Protected!
But not in all realities, such as Afghanistan. Families are being wiped out by so-called friendly fire.
Death is not spoken about or depicted very much in my bubble... we are all buzzing around like the flies... but the impact hangs on like a lead apron when it happens.
Your contribution to the evening while not pretty or light, spoke with emotional depth and truth.

NICK STRIKE, participating artist, came across this material while preparing his written process:
 

I found this while trying to confirm that such a story existed:  Centipede's Dilemma


NICK STRIKE on working with his partner's written process:

I did as the dancer asked: what followed was an attempt to relate an experience. How to give voice to a passage of time lived after the event?
Invariably there is anxiety involved in expressing an experience: this may account for the stuttered TH. However, TH, is the only sound where the tongue leaves the mouth (this truth is unthinkable). Without the given text as a handle I would of had no means to bring this particular work to bear, and for this I am happy (felix).

NICK STRIKE on viewing his partner's improvised performance:

I watched Felicity's dance which was very moving. I laughed at the extension of "taking what comes to hand" to foot and mouth also. Beautiful the finding of a mouth's echo in a leaf, and re-pairing the separation for a moment. The final striking of her foot on the roller door, it's thunder, was a perfect end to the performance. It gave ominous voice to the space and the small things of her earlier attentions: be aware.

TOM HESPE, participating artist, on improvising with other musicians:

Improvising - like relationships and sex, people will tell you - becomes better with time. There’s little doubt about this; the longer you play with someone them the more intuitive the reactions and the more refined the outcomes. For the most part this has been the case in my life. I’ve got a few musical buddies I’ve been jamming with for over twenty years and it’s amazing how fluid and intuitive it is. Still there’s something indescribable about that first time. There’s no precedent, only expectation; it can free you up a little.