Layered {Response} Art

Inchies in process of being stained.

I recently read artist Seth Apter’s post on a question we artists are often asked: How long did it take you? The following blog post will be my response to his thought provoking post which I found rang a few bells for me.

Seth’s post for October 20th, 2014 can be reached via this link: The Surface of my Work

So, how long does it take to create? ...the art therapist’s perspective. I will give voice to some accumulated thoughts on the particular topic of response art. I feel it is important to make the distinction between response art and other artwork I may engage-in for the purpose of “creating something pretty”. Response art to me indicates a creative process (and/or artifact) that seeks to process an experience; usually to do with intense experiences encountered as a part of carrying out the duties of our profession [for more on response art in art therapy see Fish, 2006, 2008, 2012].

Beginning.

When the creative bug calls too loudly to ignore I set to listen and do as it bids. When a response art piece is started, I have found there is an awareness of intent. I know it will be a response piece. Each response art piece requiring different tools, media and of course varying amounts of time/energy. I know better than to begin one of these response art pieces with a set time-frame [I used to, and consistently failed to uphold my own time frames].

Size Does/Doesn't Matter.

For those who may think that a smaller work area means faster progress, think again. From personal experience, I keep small journals or pieces of paper around which can be accessed quickly to sketch-out that nagging image or feeling that you wouldn't otherwise get out. However, from that initial sketch I seldom ‘transfer’ the image or change its dimensions. I keep adding to it.

Layers

I didn't notice this for many years, maybe it was something someone else pointed-out -- maybe it was in the art therapy theories where it came up -- but it nevertheless is true: (more often than not) My work is layered. Seth in his blog refers to his work as occurring in stages, not just literal media application stages, but processing as well.

As art therapists we see this in the work our clients do (dare I say, all the time). Many a time I have silently wished for a ceiling mounted camera to capture a time-lapse of the developing creative process. Some means of capturing the evolution and those ‘layers’ of mental and concrete process(ing). But I digress...let get back to response art.

While I could work on several creative projects at simultaneously, a response piece isn’t something I tend to juggle with. When I set down to work on it, IT consumes my attention. Rarely are these completed on 1 sitting from start to finish. They are often a multi session multi hour endeavor. And in the hours or days between each session, I’m contemplating/conceptualizing our next interaction(s)... our visit(s), edits, and re-edits.

Each layer, each visitation and engagement of the creative process providing for reflection. Pieces that are completed in briefer amounts of time are no less important or any less full of meaning. For me the layers add depth, they add to the richness of the content and the process itself -- the layers help contain that which I am responding to and at times they assist in re-framing and containing toxic or otherwise traumatic content.

Breaking the whole process down into Stages may take more self-reflection and definitely more art making -- I’ll have to call that one a work in progress, and get back to you guys on that later.

Fish, B. (2006). Image-based narrative inquiry of response art in art therapy (Doctoral dissertation). Retrieved from ProQuest Dissertations and Theses. (UMI: 3228081)

Fish, B. (2008). Formative evaluation research of art-based supervision in art therapy training.  Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 25(2) 70-77.

Fish, B. (2012). Response art: The art of the art therapist. Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, 29(3) 138-143.