As Gordon Craig said of woodcutting (in 1924): "It is a work which I found allowed one to listen, if not to speak , while practising it."
He listened to the novels of Dumas. While TravelWriting I'm listening to announcement after announcement - to people talking on mobile phones - to snatches of conversations - to ambient noise.
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2014 Update
The travelwriting continues - it has moved not just from the page to fabric, but from flat fabric into useful items - bags, pouches, and tool rolls for carrying your portable necessities with you. See the Travel Lines London collection on its new website - www.travel-lines-london.co.uk.
Why a wiggly line?
The idea for "journey lines" may have been triggered by the daily "process drawings" of artists like Marcia Hafif and Bridget Riley. I started drawing while riding on the underground after seeing some work by Lucy Skaer that consisted of repeated motifs filling a large sheet of paper ... trying to make some motifs of my own.
This evolved into an intention to simply draw a line that was as long as possible, on any bus, train, or tube journey.
Part of my project is to document these journeys on this blog – much as land artists like Richard Long document their journeys to have a record of the ephemeral work. But the journey lines are not themselves a documentation; they are a way of marking time, recording and making permanent the duration of the all-too-forgettable daily journey.
Drawing these lines is a way of being present in the daily journey - and of using "wasted" time.
Focusing on this drawing/writing gives a breathing space, away from everyday demands, yet part of the everyday routine, and a way of attending to the "disregarded everyday".
About Me
- Margaret Cooter
- I'm currently a student on the MA Book Arts course at Camberwell College of Art, London.
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