The Eyes Have It
To look is to recollect and confirm
To see is to learn and understand
Our five basic senses need to be recognised as ten.
look v see
hear v listen
touch v feel
taste v savour
whiff v smell
- Paul Cooper, 2019
More Binaries
Zero Zero was a racehorse
One one was three
Zero zero won one race
One one one seven
- Paul Cooper, 2018
Just The Facts
"I've talked about 'policy as therapy' where policy responses are about calming the public rather than addressing the problem.
- Dr Christopher Pepin-NeffSenior Lecturer in Public Policy in the Dept of Government and International Relations, University of Sydney
SAM (Sydney Alumni Magazine, Iss.10 - Semester Two 2019
Advice to my older self
Be not a noun
or worse, an adjective
As doing is your true narrative
- Paul Cooper, 2019
Constant Craving
This was the second of three group shows curated Dr Therese Keyon all considering the idea of constant craving. The "In a Material World" show explores consumerism and how society creates meaning in a material world.
The internet’s ever-present convenience and its desire to service our need for instant gratification is the backbone for the works by Paul Cooper. Using a mix of Shakespeare’s Macbeth and how well the world wide web satisfies so much of our cravings, Paul created new works branching across photography, painting, sculpture, sound and installation.
Beware the Thane of WiFi, 2018
MP3 player, amplifier, speakers, springs, timber, string, hardware, acrylic on canvas panel, salt crystals, eye of newt
150W x 150D x 150Hcm
By the pricking of my thumbs,
Something wicked this way comes.
Open locks,
Whoever knocks – Macbeth Act 1 Scene 4, Shakespeare
The witches pop up in Macbeth’s life much like those customised ads pop up in your social media pages and internet searches. Based on Macbeth’s profile, the witches believe he wants to be king so they provided him handy links to follow.
BestBefore (series), 2018
BestBefore 19May2025 - Acrylic,spices and crystals on canvas (45x45cm)
BestBefore 20May2025 - Acrylic, spices and crystals on canvass (45x45cm)
BestBefore 21May2025 - Acrylic, spices and crystals on canvas (45x45cm)
BestBefore 22May2025 - Acrylic, spices and crystals on canvas (45x45cm)
BestBefore 23May2025 - Oil, spices and crystals on canvas (45x45cm)
In keeping with today’s consumer-based ideology these paintings have in-built obsolescence. Created in a production-line manner by the cauldron speakers of Beware the Thane of WiFi, 2018 spices (eye of newt) and crystals (salt) were sprayed onto wet canvases. Similarly to Macbeth’s reign as king these paintings may not last long. They are described as “performative kinetic paintings” depicting both, the way they were created and the way they will change over time. Remember, art can be just like whitegoods, couches and TVs, you can throw them out, even before they are old, and buy brand new replacements.
Knock-knock / Who’s There? / Mirari / Mirari Who? / Never-mind, 2018
Framed photographs, timber, gaps, wallpaper
90W x 100D x 240Hcm
Inspired by the cowboy poem, “The Border Affair” which in time was set to music as “Spanish is the Loving Tongue” and performed by many an artist including Bob Dylan, Knock-knock, 2018 portrays connection through the eyes of social media and live streaming; places where who we say we are, how others see us and the person we really are is all part of the adventure.
"Mirari" is a Latin word which is used to describes the feeling of "awe and wonder". It is a root word for "mirar", a Spanish word for "to look at” which in tern is the basis for three English words: admire, mirror and miracle.
Admire = the wonderment, and the imagination of what might come next
Mirror = the wonderful, and the awe of one’s self
Miracle = the wondrous, that feeling of butterflies in your stomach as it sends a tingle through your whole body, which makes you smile, feel light headed, and invincible all at the same time.
Binaries
Are binaries always opposite?Which bit of the binary is 'YES' and which is 'NO'?
Are binaries subjective or objective?
Do binaries always have to be equal in their oppositeness?
love
> "The third key (of love) is the status of ‘memory’ in the experience of love. …….. The memory of love is the rumble of Body without Organs, the road not taken on the virtual that echo in the actual, the memory of the body they stole from us. Love is the call to enter that virtual and open up the actual, to instal inclusive disjunctions so that the roads not taken are still accessible, so that we might experiment and produce new bodies.”
> The first key is 'aimance', a term Derrida coined as a derivative of 'amour' to mean 'beyond love and friendship following their determined figures
> The second key 'experience'
- John Protevi’s essay “Love” in “between DELEUZE & DERRIDA” edited by Paul Patton & John Protevi (p184)
"Contemporary artists try to make sense of the world by identifying paths to follow by recognising patterns in chaos"
- Stephanie Rosenthal, BOS20 Artistic Director
“It is the artist’s task to find a form that that accommodates the mess”
- Samuel Beckett
Eudaimonia and How Some Cows are like Rainbows
Photographed during installation. Final work may differ slightly
Eudaimonia and how some cows are like rainbows, 2017
Ready-made Venetian blind, timber, electrical wiring, hardware, fluorescent lighting, void, fog machine, acrylic paint, fabric
In a completely dark room when you close your eyes you see light. This light is a phosphene, a light which is generated by the the eyes as part of the optic system. In part, this work is a recreation of that sensation.
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Background
“Cows are like rainbows” is something my daughter said as a young girl during a visit to a cattle property. She went on to clarify “cows are like rainbows because the closer you get (to them) the further away they are”. She had the ability to make any cow get up and walk away. I understood her quote as “quests often require us to overcome greater complications, unforeseen barriers or face longer journeys than originally anticipated”.
“Eudaimonia” is a philosophy described by the great Greek philosophers, Socrates, Plato and Aristotle as “Happiness as a virtue, a self-fulfilling way of life, the pinnacle of satisfaction as opposed to happiness through self-indulgence, decadence and abandonment.
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How it works and its symbolism
You enter a darkened room through an open door. A false, maybe temporary wall is evident. It is painted the same as the room, right down to the black skirting board.
A curious Venetian blind hangs on this false wall.
As your eyes begin to become accustom to the darkness you notice the Venetian blind is a little off kilter and there is a faint purple light glowing through the slats. You get drawn closer. You are standing very close to the blinds by now, drawn by intrigue. The wall is less import now as the question turns to "what is behind"? The purple glow is quite strong and you notice a cloud of fog lingering around the blind. A single cord dangles, you know it operates the blind so you pull to find out what it is that is behind.
Opening the blind turns off most of the lighting, leaving on a small amount of purple glow within the fog., the rest is complete darkness. But it is a false wall standing in the middle of the room and you can see over it and there is light behind, however behind the Venetian blind is a void.
When you close your eyes you still see a glowing patch or two and some swirling happenings, even in complete darkness, in fact, in complete darkness you can see more with your eyes closed.
The opening of the blind is the opening of your mind to the opportunities of discovery; the turning off of the light is the closing of your eyes, the best way to enjoy the wondrousness of imagination, and void is made available for you to fill with your thoughts.