ANOTHER WALK

As I walked up Plimmer steps to Alterations yesterday, I discovered a mysterious set of chalky markings which I followed via a round about route all the way from the road up to the gallery. There were two arrows and a series of 'H' shapes. Possibly they were left by some construction workers who were busy doing something between a few fluorescent cones at the top of the steps all day, but I had the impression that they were really a coded message to lead me on a little detour.

Lunar Phases

Since our discussion on lunar cycles I’ve been reading up on the phases of the moon, and according to this chart, next week is optimal for moon illumination. This Saturday night marks the first quarter, after which the sunlit portion of the moon will continually increase until the full moon on Saturday 19 February. I wonder if this period will provide you with much light to work with?

THOUGHTS ON ARTISTIC RESEARCH

Simon Sheikh, Objects of Study or Commodification of Knowledge? Remarks on Artistic Research', Art & Research: A Journal of Ideas, Contexts and Methods, Vol 2. No. 2, Spring 2009, http://www.artandresearch.org.uk/v2n2/sheikh.html

I came across this article by Simon Sheikh a while ago and it immediately made me think of your practice. There are plenty of parallels between Sheikh's text and your work, and this is starting to come through on the blog.

In keeping with the first stage of the residency being 'observations', I've decided to paste these quotes below as raw data, as if researching towards an essay, or as a way of framing or positioning Observations, propositions and re-presentations.

HANDS AND FEET TOUCHING THE CITY

Walking between Alterations and hardware store yesterday, the long way.

YESTERDAY'S SIGNAGE AND OTHER SMALL ACTIVITIES

After I wrote up “coffee next door”, and sat by the window in the café, many passers by would glance back between the two windows.

A PLAN FOR THE CAMERA PROP

I’m trying to think of the most practical and economical way to construct the prop and this is what comes to mind – a triangular support at the base and three movable sections of an arm extending from that, held together with butterfly screws. On my way to Bunnings now.

SLOW BEGINNINGS

Over dinner, on the first night I arrived in Wellington, we had a brief conversation about the difficulty in designating the beginning to a process orientated project, a topic that seems to be recurring. Did this project begin when I got off the plane to be picked up by Andrea and Steven? Or did it begin with the dinner we had in the gallery on Friday night? Or the next day, after we cleaned up, and Laura and Amit (metaphorically) handed the space over to me? Or is it only now as I finally get around to posting this on the blog? Maybe it was when I resumed reading Conversations with Art/Space/Nature on the flight over here (more on that later). It seems that the beginning of this project has come on slowly, with many potential starting points, that may only become clear when looking back from the end of it. 

Introduction

Observations, propositions and re-presentations
 
Thea Rechner, curated by Andrea Bell

Welcome to the Observations, propositions and re-presentations blog! This is where we will record the process of the residency at Alterations over the next three weeks. Below is the text we prepared as a press release to introduce the project, and photos taken by Amit Charan:

Beginning the first day after a New Moon, Thea Rechner’s residency at Alterations will operate as a workshop over three weeks in February. Working within the spectrum of the visible, Rechner’s practice examines art’s role in framing and re-framing what can be seen or experienced, and how these often ephemeral phenomena can take on significance beyond the everyday.