Catching Some Air
2000
Catching Some AirCatching Some Air is based on the investigation of archived and collected information (art history, history, journals, magazines, etc), thus creating a laboratory and reconstruction, and from this, an archive of a referential mix of material based on our own ideas, thoughts, knowledge of history, and the things that interest us today.
The (endless) collection of images, events and works form a solid basis for our work. The reproducing or copying is based on choices, which are closely intertwined with our art practice. Selections of material are collected and generally reproduced or copied by hand, all in the same format in order to achieve the highest neutrality possible while the drawings also allow clear differences in handwriting.
Copying is ambiguous: at the one hand it is very numbing and automatic work, on the other hand it needs quite some concentration while doing it, and to think about what one is doing, what the material is about. In other words, the almost meditative action of copying generates imagination and ideas and improves, knowledge and perhaps an understanding of others and other things through informally -because while doing the job- communicating the stories
behind the material. The images and other materials transform into common, shared knowledge and memory.
Despite the increasing number of shows, biennials, museums, art centers, magazines, books, catalogues, and the internet, it seems to become more and more difficult to communicate all this information...the paradox of information and the total availability on all subjects, and on the other side the capacity of people to get to this information.
In that way one can find oneself in a situation where everybody seems to tune in on slightly different channels and no one is able to communicate, since no one shares the same experience. Perhaps because of this, things might be 'invented' again and again or used in another way than intended, for example because ideas or projects from the past become over comodified, objectified or taken for granted. Copying could be a strategy against this.
For this set up we drew inspiration from the idea Duchamp of making it harder instead of easier to see the paintings (...)''. He knew that 'making it harder to see the paintings' would make us realize why we look at them.
The Henry Moore Institute Leeds 2002
Hessel Museum of Art Annandale on Hudson 2008
Annex Esther Schippers Berlin 2005
