The basic idea of a large outdoor painting began to form
after discussing the outstanding weather resistance and durability
of modern paint as opposed to the poor quality organic substances
earlier artists were forced to contend with. These discussions
raised the issue of a non-permanent work, a natural development
of the theme of birth-death-history…
The dimensions of the painting were all defined mathematically
as the square root of whole numbers between one and five and
then rounded off to easily made whole figures. For example
the height of the left panel is the sum of the square root
of 2 and the square root of 5 which equals 3.649 - I have
used three panels of 1220mm which equals 3660mm - 11mm difference.
All relevant dimensions are according to this plan and the
five figures out front are each the square root of the first
five whole numbers
ie. 1 metre, 1.4 metres, 1.7 metres, 2 metres, 2.2 metres
(the fifth figure being cut off after placement in the ground)
The fifth wooden figure wasn't going to be cut, but the death
of Geoff Wilson in the middle of the work was such an unexpected
event I had to build it in somehow. The first painted figure
is a direct image of Geoff -
the way he used to ram his hands into his pockets and compare
the movement of that figure with the static feel of the other
four.
The painting would survive nicely for a lifetime if kept
indoors, but the painting is a reminder of the major fact
of life; every living thing grows, flourishes, fades and decays.
The paint went on to a depth of up to about 30 layers and
it has been graffiti-proofed, but by positioning the painting
in a park the trees, grass, weeds will grow over and begin
the degrading process immediately, setting in motion the reality
of collapse.
(Laurence Berry, 1994)
(Rosemary Roberts, Northern Advocate, June 11 1994)
Commissioned by the Whangarei District Council and supported
by funding from Northern Regional Arts Council, and Whangarei
Community Arts Council.
Text by Desmond
Ford
sculpture
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