Abstraction and Minimalism in Painting

My research this past week consisted mostly of refreshing my memory with linguistic anthropological studies that have characterized language as a basic system that features innumerable combinations of words to produce an infinite number of complete thoughts. I think this is the direction my project will most likely take in the future because it highlights the importance of recognizing the complexity of language and promotes a thoughtful consideration of the philosophical implications of this integral component of our lives. Through language, we are able to communicate such abstract things such as the beauty we perceive or the emotions we feel, and as such, it is important to reflect on the power that this system has. 

This week I decided to focus on producing a refined mock-up that mainly featured acrylic paint. I mainly produced abstract imagery that retained a minimalist aura in order to reflect the systematic function of language. The minimalist aesthetic functions as a reflection of the infinite possibilities for communication and expression made possible through spoken language. I utilized a geometric abstraction in my mock up to illustrate how language's organization permits us to convey and share ideas and abstract concepts. In this study I also applied the paint in a grid-like fashion and as precise pieces to reflect how language allows us to take small components (like the letters and words that make up each language) and form them into full, complete thoughts. I also utilized minimalism/abstraction to reflect the images I display in my video pieces. The idea behind this approach was to visually represent the signified and signifier always present in language, but in a way that reveals its true existence as a mere symbol (for instance, the grey lines may remind the viewer of the blinds in my video, but only because they are visually similar; one could make the argument that these are simply lines on a canvas, and are only identified as blinds because that is what we decide to classify them as). Overall, I am very satisfied with the direction the project is heading, and am looking forward to continue evolving the imagery, scale, and video portions of the artwork.