"Tactile Dialogues" is another black work and deliberately unstable and "messy" like the coal industry. It refers metaphorically to the current dialogue about the transition from the use of coal to other more sustainable "clean" alternatives. The viewer is invited to wear gloves and use a little lifter to ease open the tabs to view the hidden text and code while keeping the hands clean.
(Click onto an image and you will be able to see the images closer up and more clearly.)
The pages have a silvery metallic sheen from their graphite rubbed surfaces. A beautiful surface despite its instability and impermanence which the gloves will show. Also we keep our hands clean trying to come to terms with the difficult issues.
Each page is cut and scarred with deep scratches suggesting the process of mining.
As I'm still only "scratching the surface" I think there may be a few more black books in the pipeline.
2 comments:
I like the idea that the book leaves a physical mark on the reader. A whole new level of interactive
Yes, but only if you choose not to wear gloves.
Years ago in London, I saw an energetic drawing by Tony Bevan with very thickly crushed on charcoal. It was framed in a window style frame with a little ledge to collect the dust as it fell off the drawing with time. It made quite an impression on me.
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