A is for Abstract

The presentation we are delivering today is in the form of an A,B,C,D which we will read and that is accompanied by 26 slides that are representative of the MMS and What’s App mediated visual conversation that has taken place…

Painting as dialogue. Painting as a message. Painting as a text message that becomes a bridge, a form of communication and correspondence.

Abstract painting- is a visual mode of thinking, a means of making and doing - a means of visual research. It’s a language we have been exploring and experimenting with in our individual practices and one that we wanted to explore as dialogue due to geographical and commitment constraints the traditional idea of studio visits was replaced by and enabled through the digital networked communication, via the handset of our mobile phone.

Using the shared language of abstract painting, Dale Holmes and Gary Simmonds have set out to relay images of paintings made in their studios as a form of dialogue, through the digital and analogue. The work was made visible through the small screen of a smart phone. This visibility is constrained and mediated through technology. The interaction was framed by the language and understanding of texting technology.

The project set out to investigate how an exchange of images via smart phone, and the occasional encounter of each other’s practice in the studio could affect work made in response to this relay. This dialogue sets out as a tool of connection, and negotiation around each other’s practice and the act of making. Shared concerns emerging from this relay so far include: indexical mark making; gesture as a calligraphic mark/ signature, colour - mediated through technology.