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From the Prosaic to the Poetic: Finding Pathos in the Everyday

Files

Exegesis(22.37 MB)

Date

2019

Authors

Supervisor

Jansen, Monique
McIntyre, Simon

Item type

Exegesis

Degree name

Master of Visual Arts

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

Auckland University of Technology

Abstract

The basis of this project is to explore how an installation-based practice may generate a combination of pathos and humour within the everyday. By examining the overlooked or mundane, I have aimed to transform the prosaic into the poetic, creating installations that echo ineffable moments. This project has investigated the way emotional connection can be conveyed within contemporary art, creating poignant intimacies between the viewer and the work. This has enabled me to explore these meaningful interactions as a felt experience and to maintain a focus on everyday objects and their emotive potential. I have analysed the affective quality of art by creating a range of small gestures that encourage a viewer to take pause and consider their emotions. I am interested in recontextualising the prosaic through a variety of practice-based methods to create an emotional bond between viewer and work. The resulting gestures have incorporated improvisational tactics and the immersive nature of contemporary installation environments. Make-shift components, ludic interventions and ready-made objects create a conversation between objects. The anthropomorphosis of these elements further inspires emotion and empathy between the viewer and the work. Reductive in nature, these components have been refined down to their simplest forms ensuring an intimate, emotional response.

Description

Keywords

Installation, Video, Sculpture, Pathos, Humour, Poetic, Grief, Absurdity, Failure, Futility, Cliche, Sublime, Improvisation, Anthropomorphism, Everyday, Emotion, Affect, Empathy, Wonder, Prosaic, Jokes, Laughter, Loss, Survival, Poignant, Melancholy, Moments, De-skilling, Readymade, Whimsy, Art

Source

DOI

Publisher's version

Rights statement

Permanent link

https://hdl.handle.net/10292/13011

Collections

Masters Theses