Corporal Traces

Introduction by Inés Aponte

The work that has been executed so far consists of a series of drawings made with ink on watercolor paper. In the process of experimentation I identified body parts with protruding bone structures and was able to capture their impressions on paper. This process led to the later incorporation of movement into the registrations. The tactile experience was transferred to an abstract and organic visual language. The cognitive world of the representation of the body crashed due to the immediacy of the registration process. At the touch of the inked body printed on paper, the distinctions between the body and the paper were dissolved and there were only sensations like pressure, friction, temperature and humidity of the medium, some tickling sensations and even discomfort from certain positions. Each of the perceptual spheres, in this case touch and sight, has its own language and when transferring directly from one to the other, the cognitive preconceptions are dismantled. Touch transfers as temperature, softness or hardness, humidity or dryness, and sight conveys as forms, shapes and colors. The exploration consisted in the transference from one sense perception to the other without the interference of cognition.

In the process of developing this work I began inking different parts of the body emphasizing on bones and joints of the hands, arms, feet and legs. These protrusions were transferred onto paper in a pattern of repetitions organized in a grid format. The repetition of marks has been an essential part of the “research”. Although the same bone or joint might be used to generate a mark, there are not two identical marks. The process of the work developed a methodology in which twenty different types of marks were identified and established as the “primary language”. The next or second phase emerged when movement was incorporated into the process of marking. This section has ten parts. These marks were also arranged in a grid formation. The last and third stage resulted from combinations of the first two stages. Various marks from the first stage were combined amongst themselves as well as with marks from the second stages. The structure of the grid was unrestrained in this section, making it more expressive and fluid. The methodology has achieved a consistency of quality and clarity of printing. The process of inking and marking in addition to the paper used, can vary the tones; factors such as the pressure used, the number of marks recorded with one inking, and the purity or amount of water present in the ink affect the results. In addition to this, various kinds of paper have been used for they will react differently to the process. The drawings have been explored in papers of various sizes and textures. They range from 8”x 8” to “36 “x 48”. The Methodology incorporates assuming different body positions in order to execute. The positions vary from kneeling, sitting, standing or leaning in a range of angles. Some of the drawings incorporate the use of graphite lines that clarify grid structures.

There is a fourth and final section which is the marking process is integrated into activities such as kneading bread and walking on the beach. This final part would be an offspring of the movement section, but in this case the ink is applied to the material in use. In the first case it would be applied to the flour and in the other case in would be mixed with the sand. Then one proceeds to register the movement of hands and feet as they execute the activity. There are 12 drawings done with the harina and 6 drawings made while moving the feet on sand.

The theoretical framework on which these drawings were created was inspired by the meditative experience of direct perception as presented in a work by Greg Goode, “The Path of Direct Perception”. In this work, he directs us on a series of exercises in which the emphasis is placed on direct perception and sensation registration. During the exercises we generate a greater awareness of the body, the sensory apparatus and the world. In sustained observation of our contact with the objects of experience. We become aware of the fact that the notion of separation is cognitive and that there is no subject/object division in direct experience. The notion of the “I” as the experiencer of reality is being challenged. I decided to transfer this meditative experience to the act of “making art”.

The works are meditations, explorations into the non duality of reality and an invitation to participate in this experience.