Throughout the course of this essay i will be comparing two drawings. One drawing was done by Michael Craig-Martin, Drawings of four identical boxes with lids reversed,1969. The other by Liam Gillick, Farm Form Firm Forum, 2014. Both pieces share visual similarities. They both use strong, defined straight lines and symmetrical shapes. The images create a sense of both order and anarchy. Michael Craig-Martin’s piece is made using plastic tape on paper while Liam Gillicks piece is a set of three screen prints. The different timelines during which both pieces were made may have also influenced the styling of the drawings. Michael Craig-Martin’s piece was made during the peak of the cold war with Russia where the world was on the verge of nuclear
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Figure 1 consists of eight boxes with one half of the boxes having their lids opened, exposing the inside while the other half having their lids closed but still exposing some of these box’s insides. The drawing is made using 1/64” “Chart-pak” black adhesive tape on white paper. Drawing with tape facilitates the generation of perfectly straight lines and due to the slight elasticity of the tape, it allows it to be deformed. The size of the tape also plays a factor Michael Craig-Martin’s piece. He uses very thin tape in order to use as little space as possible on the paper. This creates a minimalistic effect on the drawing. He also amplifies this effect by separating the placement of the boxes into two distinguished halves across the paper. These strategies have been used to encourage the spectator’s active engagement. In this piece the artist ensnares the viewer in frustrating games in which the physical evidence and the visual suggestion are at odds with each other. The boxes look very simple and practical however with closer examination it becomes apparent that their lids have been exchanged and they can only be put in the right place and made functional using the viewer’s imagination. The artist describes this piece as a crucial consideration in relation of idea to form. The form derives from the straightforward following through of simple logical ideas, in this case, the idea of taking the progression and the idea of reversal. Though the form is completely controlled, t is not premeditated. The piece both explains and conceals itself. Figure 2 consists of a three dimensional drawing with rectangular/cuboid spaces cut into it both horizontally and vertically. This piece creates an illusion of both continuity and disruption. His use of 3D shapes is much less complex compared to Craig-Martin’s piece. This piece concentrates more on the simplicity of
Figure 1 consists of eight boxes with one half of the boxes having their lids opened, exposing the inside while the other half having their lids closed but still exposing some of these box’s insides. The drawing is made using 1/64” “Chart-pak” black adhesive tape on white paper. Drawing with tape facilitates the generation of perfectly straight lines and due to the slight elasticity of the tape, it allows it to be deformed. The size of the tape also plays a factor Michael Craig-Martin’s piece. He uses very thin tape in order to use as little space as possible on the paper. This creates a minimalistic effect on the drawing. He also amplifies this effect by separating the placement of the boxes into two distinguished halves across the paper. These strategies have been used to encourage the spectator’s active engagement. In this piece the artist ensnares the viewer in frustrating games in which the physical evidence and the visual suggestion are at odds with each other. The boxes look very simple and practical however with closer examination it becomes apparent that their lids have been exchanged and they can only be put in the right place and made functional using the viewer’s imagination. The artist describes this piece as a crucial consideration in relation of idea to form. The form derives from the straightforward following through of simple logical ideas, in this case, the idea of taking the progression and the idea of reversal. Though the form is completely controlled, t is not premeditated. The piece both explains and conceals itself. Figure 2 consists of a three dimensional drawing with rectangular/cuboid spaces cut into it both horizontally and vertically. This piece creates an illusion of both continuity and disruption. His use of 3D shapes is much less complex compared to Craig-Martin’s piece. This piece concentrates more on the simplicity of