Dimensions Variable: Art and Invention

Abstract

In this Research Paper, I investigate a key theme of my art practice: approaching art-making as a 'pseudo scientist' or 'backyard (amateur) inventor'. Through my research I have examined the potential benefits of this approach, and the value of a strategy of working within limited means and contexts, particularly where such 'inventiveness' is sure to be superseded by much more powerful forces of technological innovation. I have identified other artists whose work is constructed with a particular emphasis on an innovativeness of construction, whether it is to function as a critique of technology or to have an educational role, or to generate novelty for its own sake. Many of my previous artworks have been technologically inventive in a 'low-tech' way, such as my 'robots' or 3-D photocopying. In the projects I have worked on during my research period I have developed a different type of 'invention' that is new to my art practice. Through the synthesis of a diverse collection of information I have constructed narrative stories, which in turn have led me to construct props and models to illustrate the stories. In the Research Paper I discuss the two series of artworks I produced using this approach of building a narrative: the Diana Jones Trilogy of adventure stories inspired by information I gathered through my zine projects, and the Space Wizards Trilogy of science fiction stories which feature many of my art inventions and also creatures and robots inspired by 20th century art movements. These projects were inspired by the pre-production process of film-making. This connection to filmmaking and cinematic visual effects relates to the Pataphysical themes I have also explored in past works, where an idea may seem plausible in a certain context, in the same sense that a miniature model may seem enormous in the context in which it appears in a film.