pictures on flesh

There is a terrace close-by looking to the mountains and the city. I saw a cloud that looked like an amorph object lingering in the air. It called to mind the loneliness that Kathy Acker would have felt while dealing with cancer. I felt enormous sadness… Chris Kraus has an incredible text about Acker and her illness in Afterall (Spring-Summer 2016). Kraus writes about the tattoos of Acker:

“Literal madness: images written not just as words on the page, but as pictures on flesh.” (p.138)

Pictures on flesh… Tattoos – like poetry or, say, painting – are gestures of life… Before starting to write, I usually have a 30 minutes exercise that I let go of words – Jennifer Allen taught that technique two years ago in her writing class at the Academy. It’s reminiscent of a gestural painting. This morning, I’ve learned that Irina Nakhova’s class start with such gestures as well. In a similar fashion, Melissa Gordon and the students were marking with various objects – just putting traces on a huge paper laid on the floor.

Painter Beatriz Morales, who is in Nakhova’s class, showed me a series of hers: Hidden Truth (2015-2016). Basically, Morales paints images of violence by covering the main act with a splash of paint. Another simple gesture, yet veiling something uncanny.

Beatriz Morales, Hidden Truth Copper, 300 x 500 cm

How do you survive in the world as an artist? asked Irina Nakhova in the class today. Do you teach? Do you have a side job? Do you try to sell your work?

I would add: do you cry out loud from time to time?

02/08/16 16:26 Summer Academy 2016