This research records a three year journey of exploration through the visual arts, specifically painting and drawing in relation to the landscape. The written work presented here provides a support document to my final exhibition of paintings that were exhibited in the John Curtin Gallery at Curtin University of Technology from November 24th - December 15th 2002.The writing of this exegesis is in itself a creative piece, but it is not the same as the visual research that culminates in the paintings. I am convinced that to talk about creating art actually leads one away from being in the experiencing of that art, hence this writing discusses the processes involved and not the finished work. My primary objective within this exegesis is to present a discussion centred around some of the philosophical issues that became visible whilst carrying out my practical work. This discussion is also about process itself in art making practices and research, hence this exegesis is intended to run as a parallel to the visual body of work as presented in the final exhibition of works held in the John Curtin Gallery.I have intentionally used my own practice as a device to question the choices and outcomes of art making generally in an effort to add a little colour to the larger discourse of creative practices. Some of the writing may seem personal (apart from the journal notes) and again, this is an intentional device in order to bring about a sense of embodiment within the writing itself and a way of mirroring the processes within the paintings.

In the way of museums, certain things have been collected and assembled for a display, a truth, in the form of a private room in which resides the dream world of the curator. Then, as the visual expression of this inner space deepens, they are carefully taken apart, always with respect for the original. Yet the work is not shaped by the hand of a conservator destined to abandon the imagination in favour of a trail of physical evidence. Nor does it reflect the conventional rationalist sensibilities of a museum worker who, by suppressing a poetic understanding of the world is confined by "cold language" (Frame 1992 p.45) and remains caught inextricably in the web of colonial thinking.Here the imagination is truth (Einzig 1996) and an understanding of the nature of this inner space the key to the locked door. The Anthropologist and the Archaeologist, indeed a whole host of disciplinary specialists may come knocking, but it is the artist that gains access to the curatorial spirit. Compelled as much by a love of the museum profession as a crisis of European consciousness (Spivak in Harasym 1990), objects are assembled for an inner journey to a place where shadow and sunlight chase each other across the landscape (McQueen 2000). This is the dialectic space of both curator and artist, of the rational and the irrational, of inside and outside, and of disciplinary devotion and betrayal.

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In the way of museums, certain things have been collected and assembled for a display, a truth, in the form of a private room in which resides the dream world of the curator. Then, as the visual expression of this inner space deepens, they are carefully taken apart, always with respect for the original. Yet the work is not shaped by the hand of a conservator destined to abandon the imagination in favour of a trail of physical evidence. Nor does it reflect the conventional rationalist sensibilities of a museum worker who, by suppressing a poetic understanding of the world is confined by "cold language" (Frame 1992 p.45) and remains caught inextricably in the web of colonial thinking.Here the imagination is truth (Einzig 1996) and an understanding of the nature of this inner space the key to the locked door. The Anthropologist and the Archaeologist, indeed a whole host of disciplinary specialists may come knocking, but it is the artist that gains access to the curatorial spirit. Compelled as much by a love of the museum profession as a crisis of European consciousness (Spivak in Harasym 1990), objects are assembled for an inner journey to a place where shadow and sunlight chase each other across the landscape (McQueen 2000). This is the dialectic space of both curator and artist, of the rational and the irrational, of inside and outside, and of disciplinary devotion and betrayal.

A critical culture requires that the site of appearance, the temporal coincidence of the subject, the object and the site, be acknowledged as a ground for meaning. Through a built investigation and a theoretical address this thesis examines the site of appearance for contemporary creative practice; the extent to which it continues to be defined by and contained within the conceptual frame of the Enlightenment aesthetic as the privileged discourse of the object. In a detailed analysis of the architecture of the exhibition, the 18th century Academy Salon and the Parisian bourgeois hotel are juxtaposed with examples from the late 20th century practice of site-specific exhibition. This comparison reveals an essential connection between art and architecture, between architectural form and social representation. An alternative concept of the exhibition as a site of appearance thereby acknowledges individual, temporally specific interpretation as a potential ground for critical discourse within the contemporary art institution.

The challenge of creating a dialogue between a viewer and an artwork is the next logical step in the evolution of my artwork. The problem is to find a way of creating art that does not only remain visual. By the same token, also to create something that does not remain purely conceptual and out of touch. In order to make the experience of encountering artwork more meaningful, a merging of physical and mental interaction in the viewer is strived for.This project serves as a tool for reflection on myself and understanding a way of working. It also provides an opportunity to clarify many of the beliefs and positions that I hold to be true in what I do in theory and practice. This project attempts to provide viewers new experiences with art through interaction. / Department of Art

The goal of this project was to create a mobile structure in which a suite of paintings could be transported and viewed. When the structure and paintings are arranged as an "installation," they will create a more active role for a "viewer" who could then be defined as a "participant." The participant would be involved in the assembly of the environment and would find more opportunities for interaction in the assembled environment than he or she would in a traditional gallery or museum setting. A description and explanation of the processes involved in the creation of this project is preceded by a discussion of different historical, cultural, and methodological ways by which artwork is or has been presented. Also referenced are different artists and philosophies that informed this project. / Department of Art

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[pt] Esta dissertação versa sobre os significados do ingresso e usos do design dentro de espaços museológicos. É importante ressaltar que tal uso deve ser observado em consonância com as inúmeras relações existentes e estabelecidas nesses locais, que se articulam entre as instituições mantenedoras do patrimônio histórico, suas obras e exposições, e seus visitantes. Tais relações são complexas e multifacetadas, devendo ser observadas e estudadas dentro de um contexto histórico específico, abrangendo o âmbito social, político-cultural e econômico. Dessa forma, esta pesquisa tem como objetivo mais amplo examinar as motivações, bases e limites da inserção e uso do design, bem como, em decorrência, as alterações que inscreveu no próprio conceito de museu. Sem olvidar os diversos profissionais envolvidos nas supracitadas relações, ressaltamos o papel do designer dentro desses limites, e de que maneira esses especialistas atuam e servem aos museus, investigando que tipo de contribuição são capazes de agregar para os estudos do Campo do Design. Assim, uma das diversas questões a ser problematizada e discutida é pertinente às facilidades que a sua aplicação pode provocar, e, ainda, o alcance e a inclusão social que é capaz de promover. / [en] This dissertation deals with the meanings of entrance and uses of design within museum spaces. It is important to emphasize that such use must be observed in harmony with the numerous relationships existing and established in these places, which are articulated between the institutions that maintain the historical heritage, its works and exhibitions, and its visitors. Such relationships are complex and multifaceted, and should be observed and studied within a specific historical context, covering the social, political-cultural and economic spheres. Thus, this research has as its main objective to examine the motivations, bases and limits of the insertion and use of the design, as well as, consequently, the changes that inscribed in the very concept of museum. Without forgetting the various professionals involved in the aforementioned relations, we highlight the role of the designer within these limits, and in what way these specialists act and serve the museums, investigating what kind of contribution they can add to the studies of the Design Field. Thus, one of the various issues to be discussed and discussed is pertinent to the facilities that its application can cause, as well as the reach and social inclusion that it is capable of promoting.

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