Transcendence in Contemporary Abstract Art Practice

Transcendence is the process that often occurs when viewing artworks that escorts our mind to another place. Transcendence originated from Latin and means climb beyond. The term means to explore beyond ourselves and is experienced quite often-involving art. Often used to describe the hidden world and beliefs of the artists who made them or majority of the time, the artworks aim is to provoke an emotion or past memory to export the viewer. Artists use many different forms and mediums to take their viewers on a journey. In this assignment I will be investigating the relationship between abstraction and transcendence, this will include visual and audio. Artists such as James Turrell, Joan Dumouchel, and Mark Rothko, all deal with transcendence but in very different and unique ways. Whilst a majority of the artists working with the idea of transcendence aim for the viewer to have a unique experience when observing their work, many of the artists experience this feeling whilst creating the artworks themselves. For each individual the art could trigger or mean a different thing and this is why the artists create such pieces, the individuality is what they strive to achieve.

Abstraction and Transcendence

There are infinite ways to represent transcendence, but one of the most common ways is with abstraction art. The connection between non-representational and transcendence is the fact that by looking at a non-figurative artwork, the eye cannot connect with any resembling objects therefore allowing your imagination to wander and create a personal meaning to the artwork. Painting in often-large proportions consuming the viewer is what many abstract artists aim to do. Joan Dumouchel was born in Montreal in 1953 and has been a successful artist for many years. She has collections all around the world in countries such as Canada, United States, Europe and Asia. Dumouchel aims to create a symbolic universe or an alternative world, engaging the observer into her creative atmosphere. Her artworks are aimed to get the viewer thinking about topics such as the universe, the meaning of life, expectations and human emotion. This is the process of transcendence and taking the viewer on a journey whilst enjoying her artworks. Domouchel states: “When I create figures, I inhabit them for a moment and I see myself living my emotions and my fantasies through them. It fascinates me... and it appears to me that this is the magical in creation”.

Her goal is to take the viewer on a magical journey into their soul and continue conversations about topics that are not always spoken about. She has participated in many solo and group exhibitions her most recent Dessine-moi une histoire, Galerie Blanche, in Montreal, her hometown and where she was born. All her works embody the idea of transcendence, although some taking on the role more prominently, such as her abstract works, ‘Deep Blue’ and ‘Transcendence’. Both works take the viewer on a journey of their own, swallowing them whole by the size and beauty of the pieces. The irregular shapes and bright vibrant colors help to trigger emotions such as happiness or sadness this is particularly evident in ‘Transcendence’, 2019. The details in the foreground contrasting with the simpleness of the background help to give the piece depth, taking peoples thoughts deep into their mind. The process of not being present and completely emerging yourself in the work is the goal of Dumouchel.

Mark Rothko (1903 – 1970) was an artist that was largely involved with abstraction art. He used a restricted color pallet as well as geometric squares and rectangles to draw the observer into his works. The layering of the colors over one another provides his works with depth. Rothko’s focus throughout his career as an artist was to show and provoke basic human emotion from himself whilst creating the works and by the viewers when they observe the artworks. Rothko had a very religious connection with his art and therefore wanted the viewers to feel some form of emotion as well. He described the moment that you become completely immersed in the art as reaching ‘the sublime’, for Rothko this was his purpose of creating art. He knew that it was not just art that he was creating it was a spiritual relationship within his audience as well. For Rothko if all that was seen in his works was just some colorful shapes on canvas then the viewer was missing the whole point of his work in the first place.

‘Untitled (Red)’ was created in 1956 and is one of Rothko’s most famous works as it has been featured in many galleries all around the world. It is the most recognized piece he created when it comes to transcendence. The spiritual connection that he experienced whilst creating this piece has a heavy impact on the way the public views this work. Rothko was aware that colors such as reds and pinks connected with people and this was his major focus. Solid colors in a simple arrangement also makes people begins to make people think subconsciously about certain topics such as emotions, memories or major life events. Rothko uses his knowledge about how colors connect with emotion and thereby created ‘Untitled (Red)’, 1956 with the intention of using the blended colors and the diluted reds to motivate emotion within the viewer. ‘No. 61 (Brown on Blue)’ has a similar effect on Rothko’s audience. The layering of the violet over the brown provides the piece with depth considering the limited color palate and painting technique. The imperfect brush strokes provide the viewer another aspect to ponder. He begun to move away from the brighter colors towards the end of his career, as he believed it helped the mind stay in a more controlled setting. Through his use of abstraction art and colors, Rothko is able to take people on a spiritual journey and throughout his life, this was his aim for his art.

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Installations and Transcendence

The transcending experience can occur for many people through a canvas hanging on a wall, but for others a physical installation is what shifts their mindset to consider their sense of being and individual spiritual experiences. The installations that aim to be of a transcendental nature often involve a large lighting component that engulfs the onlooker. Often these types of exhibitions first calm the mind and that allows the pathway for the spiritual experience. James Turrell and Ellsworth Kelly both concentrate on installation and the way that can transform someone’s life. James Turrell has won multiple awards for art over the years, the most recent being LACMA Film + Art Gala Honoree during 2015. All over the world, Turrell has won awards for his art but also the work he has done with architecture. This links in with his works involving transcendence and installations that have been featured in exhibitions all over the world. Turrell’s use of bright colors, geometric shapes working in unison with light provides the onlooker with an emotional connection to their thoughts and mind. He uses projected light to create a sense of walls and barriers that are only an illusion to the eye. The illumination of the lights often is mesmerizing and due to think people can let their mind travel, hence the feeling of transcendence. Turrell’s series of installations ‘Shallow Space’ is one of his most recent accomplishments creating room’s full vibrant colors and light. The exhibition is made up of multiple rooms displayed with blues and pinks creating illusions and shadows that the viewer can be completely immersed in. The installation is viewed from the back of the room with the use of controlled lighting the installation provides a perspective of depth into the present moment and mind. Another major exhibition that Turrell has created is - ‘Projection Pieces’. Light is projected from the opposite side or corner of the room. This creates shadows and geometric shapes on the wall that once experienced can have a major spiritual impact on the individual. ‘Porter Powell Yellow’ was created in 1968. With a major focus on holography, which is the process of making light the subject rather than a medium, Turrell allows light to have a physical presence in these spaces. This experience often inundates the people with emotion and a sense of being. People connect light with religious aspects of life and therefore these installations can have large impacts on people for the better.

Ellsworth Kelly was a very well-known artist all around the world, being involved in many solo and group exhibitions. He created a variety of art from abstract paintings to sculptures and installations. Kelly was asked to design and create an original piece for Douglas S. Cramer a well-known television producer. The building looked simple on the outside, similar structure to an igloo but also looked similar to a religious building such as a church. Colored panes of glass were put in as windows, on the inside of the building they had an amazing effect on the light entering the room. The building was named Austin, and is currently located at the University of Texas’s Blanton Museum of Art. The panes of glass on the walls project patterns of color around the walls on the inside of the building. Whilst having this experience the mind travels, as intended by Kelly. He wanted the people experiencing his work to undergo some form of transcendence and that a spiritual connection may be reached within the individual. Kelly created all the artworks inside the building, including the series of black and white abstract artworks arranged where the cross would be expected to be hanging. These works turned out to be a major talking point for the general public and art critics. Multiple models were made of Austin making sure that the windowpanes would bend the light in the intended way to create shadows and a glow. The whole reasoning and concept were that people, who were viewing the light would have some form of divine experience whilst absorbed in the art itself. Kelly created the extraordinary artwork for Douglas S. Cramer to use but once the public heard about Kelly’s amazing creation the installation ended up in a museum for everyone to enjoy and experience.

Sound and Transcendence

The use of sound to portray transcendence is one of many techniques, that artists use to completely immerse their audience in art. By using sound to depict a picture in someone’s mind is a true representation of the word transcendence. Transporting someone through their own mind and experiences to come to miraculous discoveries, points in their lives, and by using their imagination to experience emotion and sentiment. The sounds that the audience hear whilst experiencing transcendence support the experience and help transform from reality into the mind. Two artists that aim to achieve such an experience are Samson Young and Florian Hecker. Both artists create their own unique sounds or source the sounds themselves. Similarly, both artists use installation to have the full effect on their listener. Empty rooms with only sound to listen to and nothing on the walls to influence the experience. Samson Young is a Chinese artist who specializes in the use of sound. He has had many years of training in the composition of music and melody and the way this can affect people. He enjoys using multimedia art to transform someone’s experience. The three main topics that he focuses on when creating his sounds are war, identity and literature (Artsy, 2018). He specializes in sourcing his own sounds from video games, songs, poems, and nature. He uses the space in which he plays the sound, as a heavy influence in what he wants his audience to think about. Objects, stories and spaces are used to achieve the goal of his work. Young has been involved in many exhibitions whether they are solo or group exhibitions. He has also been awarded many awards such as Artist of the Year (Media Art Category) in 2018 for the Hong Kong Arts Development Council. Young uses transcendence to take his audience on a journey. The sounds heard whilst experiencing one of his exhibitions let the public leave the present behind and experience their own imagination as if it is the only thing in focus. One of Young’s most successful exhibitions was during 2015, ‘Pastoral Music’. Small works that he has created himself line the walls of the room where he is playing the loop. This is to target certain topics that Young wishes his audience to think about. Young’s use of transcendence and influencing his audience by what they see and hear, inspires my work in various ways. This is evident as abstraction works are open to interpretation and therefore my works can target the imagination of the audience and take them on a journey into their soul and force a reflection on themselves and those around them.

Florian Hecker is another artist that uses sound to portray experiences. Hecker works with sound and installations to emphasize his works. Depending on who the exhibition is targeting and what is happening in Hecker’s life at that current point will be a large influence on what is included in the exhibition. Location is a major part of his choices when creating a show. Hecker believes that listening is often driven by the desire to know something. Hecker uses similar sounds coinciding with layering unfamiliar sounds over the top to incorporate memory and movement to understand the piece completely. Hecker stated: “When working with sound as a material or auditory object, there are a great number of essential prerequisites to consider in order to deepen the intensity of a piece: What is it that makes this sound more special or intense than that sound?” (Museum of Modern Art, 2013).

This gives insight into the process he uses to create such emotive and moving sounds. Whilst listening to his work the listener can travel through their experiences, life choices, minds, souls and emotions. This is a truly unique thing to understand and be involved in. Hecker enjoys providing his listeners with a personal moment for them to reflect and connect. During Hecker’s exhibition ‘Event, Stream, Object’ he received a lot of cover over the media for the unique experience people enjoyed. The exhibition occurred during 2010 and was a huge success and many reviews were positive from the general public as well as the art community. He developed the exhibition whilst studying at MIT. The technique that he used was the concept of auditory chimera. Auditory chimera explores pitch, perception and sound and the affect that they can have on someone. His sounds incorporated material read by students through a recording. Due to his individuality, he has been awarded many awards over the recent years. Hecker uses his sounds to create a transcendent experience for his listener and provides a pathway to the imagination. He provides a connection to the fantasy world.

Through the use of any medium, such as visual or audio, all art forms can have similar effects on the viewer and therefore creating a magical and unique experience for individuals. The relationship between abstract sound and abstract art is the inability to recognize anything distinct within the work and therefore this concept allows the viewer to interpret the art however their mind decides. The aim of works relating to transcendence is for people to connect with their minds, souls, and emotions and artist such as James Turrell, Mark Rothko, Joan Dumouchel, Ellsworth Kelly, Samson Young, and Florian Hecker, all strive to reach a connection with the audience and that is where their passion for art lies.

References

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