wiener library 2014

Artists Statement

Altered Books – 'Stilled Lives'

The prospect of making a work of art in any form or mode, relating to or concerned with the Holocaust, was one I approached with trepidation and, I trust, a degree of humility.

I realised these qualities taken together might form a barrier to experimentation, risk taking and formal inventiveness, which are aims and qualities I might aspire to as a contemporary practitioner. I therefore decided to work on a series of sculptures with the generic title ‘Stilled Lives’, and in so doing hoped that the practice of making would help in resolving a complex of ethical problems besetting my thoughts.

This strategy might have worked had I not embarked on a programme of research and re-reading. In particular Primo Levi’s ‘If This is a Man’, Theodor Adorno’s writings ‘Cultural Criticism and Society’ and ‘Negative Dialectics’.

However, rather than smoothing the way, the effect of these utterly profound writings compounded my concerns and doubts about the path I was taking, and the potential for a creative blockage emerged.

As is often the case, a simple task resolved this problem - for the time being. In the course of research for what turned out to be the first completed work, I discovered the Hebrew word for writings, which when inverted appeared to me as flames. I then learnt that in essence ‘Holocaust’ means ‘Burnt Sacrificial Offering’.

From then on everything fell into place, resulting in four works from which ‘K’tuvim’ was chosen for this exhibition.

Nigel Slight
February 2014

Wiener Library Book Art Competition 2014	back to electricbackroom
Altered Books - 'Stilled Lives'
29 Russell Square, London WC1B 5DP - The Wolfson Reading Room 6 March - 17 April 2014 open Monday - Friday 10am - 5pm (Tuesday 10am - 7pm)
Title: 'Displacement' (Stilled Lives Series) Year: 2014 Medium / techniques: Lost mould method where a chosen book and any attachments is invested in a crystalline silica mould which is then placed in a kiln where the original book is burnt away. The resulting void is filled with a suitable molten metal. In this case aluminium. The glass vessels are silver gilded. The resulting 'still life' is set in a mirrored case. Hidden behind the book on shards of broken glass is the Hebrew title inverted. For me this image is reminiscent of flames. Dimensions: H 30cm X D 21cm X 75cm Title: 'K'tuvim' (Stilled Lives Series) Year: 2014. Medium/techniques: A selection of found books destined for pulping were bound by strands of barbed wire and subjected to temperatures in excess of 1000 degrees Fahrenheit. When the desired results were achieved the burnt books were treated with a silicone stabiliser. Title: 'Book Of Names' (Stilled Lives Series) Year: 2014 Medium / techniques: Lost mould method where a chosen book and any attachments is invested in a crystalline silica mould which is then placed in a kiln where the original book is burnt away. The resulting void is filled with a suitable molten metal. In this case cast iron, which was then gilded. The glass bottle contains mercury which picks up local vibrations, including those emanating from the vibrating amplifier (see mp3 file) below the ceiling vent to the right of the book, which together form the image of a 'lamp'. (Note: the amplifier including volume is operated by remote control handset) Dimensions: H 28cm X D 19cm X W 80cm Lighting specification. 2 x 12v halogen bulbs. Adaptor 12vAC 1.7A 20VA Title: 'Family Inventory' (two clothes – one dictionary – one false ledger – one bundle refractory gloves) Year: 2013/14. Medium / techniques: Dictionary: Lost mould method where a chosen book is invested in a crystalline silica mould which is then placed in a kiln where the original book is burnt away. The resulting void is filled with a suitable molten metal. In this case bronze. The false ledger is an adapted ex-book. The refractory gloves conceal a miniature amplifier recording Klezmer music. The attached mp3 file is an example only, as a piece is being especially written for this work.	Artists Statement Altered Books – 'Stilled Lives' The prospect of making a work of art in any form or mode, relating to or concerned with the Holocaust, was one I approached with trepidation and, I trust, a degree of humility. I realised these qualities taken together might form a barrier to experimentation, risk taking and formal inventiveness, which are aims and qualities I might aspire to as a contemporary practitioner. I therefore decided to work on a series of sculptures with the generic title ‘Stilled Lives’, and in so doing hoped that the practice of making would help in resolving a complex of ethical problems besetting my thoughts. This strategy might have worked had I not embarked on a programme of research and re-reading. In particular Primo Levi’s ‘If This is a Man’, Theodor Adorno’s writings ‘Cultural Criticism and Society’ and ‘Negative Dialectics’. However, rather than smoothing the way, the effect of these utterly profound writings compounded my concerns and doubts about the path I was taking, and the potential for a creative blockage emerged. As is often the case, a simple task resolved this problem - for the time being. In the course of research for what turned out to be the first completed work, I discovered the Hebrew word for writings, which when inverted appeared to me as flames. I then learnt that in essence ‘Holocaust’ means ‘Burnt Sacrificial Offering’. From then on everything fell into place, resulting in four works from which ‘K’tuvim’ was chosen for this exhibition. Nigel Slight February 2014