ANDREA ABBATANGELO

Tutorial with Jonathan Kearney _ November 15th 2021 

Publish on my Blog Journal as Post n 13

In the last days I was confused and concerned that I wasn't doing enough. My mind was telling me: too much materials, too many articles; just too much!

Today I had an amazing and revealing chat with Jonathan Kearney.

The key word to describe be experience so far was "Expanding". It came clear and unexpected. But is the very true feeling I'm going through: I'm expanding my conscious sensorial participation in the group. I'm not accumulating informations or data but I'm experiencing them. I let them cross my body. my mind and my consciousness. I'm letting it happen! I've learnt how to avoid to resist and instead let singular input or whole experiences passing through.

I envisage a multi-sensorial and heterogeneous investigation which is currently structured as an archipelago. There are so many under-explored context and identities to engage and get to know deeply. 

Very relevant for my practice was to listen to David Cross's Lecture. There are several point of connection between Cornford & Cross's project and some of my works - ie W.A.Y. - What About You (2007); Project RadioLondon _ Harare (2018); Percorso Pubblico (2019). I really resonate to the topic "I'll be your mirror", we can see each other on one another experiences. I understand myself on listening someone else!

Since 2015 and especially after the residency in Sicily, where I produced and fired natural terracotta, I felt the necessity to produce my own materials, this has notably slowed down my process but also gave me the sense of doing the right thing. From clay to pigments and to photography. I was very focused on HOW. In the last weeks I've been asking myself mainly WHY. It is because I want to subvert the industrial culture of manufacturing natural materials and resources. While in nature all the process of transformation are collaboratives and reversible [bringing elements together, atom by atom], since the industrial revolution we learnt how to convert natural resources but those products will never return part of nature. It is an irreversible process.

My favorite moment to create, reflect and expose myself to the danger of all kind of thinking is the evening \ night \ very early morning. Once again I'm finding vibrant the moments in which my mind is not caught by someone else attention. We are also in the season when the days get shorter and the nights get longer. [the great cosmic dance: the movement of celestial bodies, the rhythm of the tides, the circulation of blood and lymph in animals and plants - Monica Sjöö e Barbara Mor]

When Jonathan asked me what is the first steep of any art project of mine I immediately said: listening. Is so true, it doesn't matter if we are talking about materials or places or people. I have the urge to listen it first and then let go this first impression. Despite create and being stuck with one opinion I prefer to know more.

• My research will investigate how nature could be involved as a public space.
• I will focus on recent cases of reforestation - ie Scotland - and generally the cycle of making forest. I will address forest and nature in general as a complex system but also as our original habitat. 
• My research will be dedicated to Jaider Esbell.

Other thoughts and insights from today's conversation with Jonathan may come in the next few days' posts.

Category: tutorials