The Other Fears

Abstract

Research Background – This visual art based solo exhibition used forty-eight photographic images of moving television content to explore the idea of sense memory, particularly fear, and its relationship to the Void in contemporary art. This work was exhibited in the Webb Gallery, Queensland College of Art, Griffith University in 2017 and sought to: i. Test the productive potential of the void in contemporary art through studio-based research; ii. Liberate the void from its prevailing semantics and thematics in visual arts discourse and engage with its use value as a conceptual tool, thereby filling a gap in knowledge of the contemporary experience of the void; iii. Disrupt prevailing art-historical conventions by offering the void as an alternative method of thinking about and making art that mediates our relationship to primordial forces.

Research contribution - This series of works contributed to the under researched concept of sense memory, the Void, and the conceptual use of television narrative in contemporary art.

Research significance – As these areas are under researched in visual arts practice-led research, the significance of this exhibition was to contribute to new knowledge regarding the Void as an alternative method of thinking about and making art that mediates our relationship to primordial forces. It also led to a greater understanding of the importance of the cinematic concept of the mise-en-scène in engaging viewers at the level of affect.