Residuum

“There is a gap between conscious intention and action” (Walter Benn Michaels)

Chance is an integral part of our everyday lives. The fact that each of us was conceived and born is a miracle of chance in itself. Chance happenings occur all the time, from the creation of the universe to the tiniest particles of matter and anti-matter colliding incessantly.

Many of us have had the experience where our intended actions do not always have the intended outcome. As the axiom, “The best-laid schemes o' mice an' men gang aft agley” implies, chance and randomness are the default settings for life. As humans we want order in our lives and invent tools to aid us, many of which are a product of chance.

Even in science, it is impossible to predict the exact position of a particle of matter because by the time its position is mapped, it's own velocity will have moved it on. If it's speed is tracked then it's position changes constantly, it can't be fixed, ever. Each particle is affected by other particles and if we make this connection with ourselves, each one of us has an effect on the other person, in whatever way that may be. The Chaos Theory uses the idea of a butterfly's wings flapping in one part of the world creating a hurricane in another. This is how much everything is interconnected.

What a boring place the world would be if we knew in advance the outcome of every action. Part of the excitement of life is not knowing how something will turn out. It is a journey of discovery. Others who have gone before us, give us the benefit of their wisdom and their folly, but ultimately each of us has to experience life in our own way. That is what is paramount.

Criteria for the project

Using chance in art is a means of reducing the distance between art and life. Art is usually the product of intention. Here, instead, I have created the conditions to allow chance to have a hand in creating a piece of art.

Each day of the exhibition visitors are invited to blow bubbles over a large piece of paper and write their names on a list of participants. The results of the day's bubble blowing will be posted on my blog.

The intention is to use the random outcomes from these images to create a single large-scale image using all the results from the exhibition. The results from future exhibition will be added to the large-scale image making it even larger. Your involvement is essential to enable this plan to succeed.

I hope you really enjoy participating in this project.

Morwenna Lake

1st exhibition - UCA Farnham, 2-11 June 2011

3 June 2011

Here are the images from the exhibition so far:

List of participants, as of 13.6.11:

Karen Marks, Lewis Blake, Emily Ciccarielli, Karen Cunningham, Stephanie Hadingham, Amanda Green, Tony Lake, Stefi Hauke, Irene Hurden, Tiffany Hurden, Ashlyn Cunningham, Kirsty Cunningham, Billie McMillan, Hannah McCarthy, Louisa Lynch, Jane Lynch, Kim, Peter Marriott, Naomi Butts, Florence Willis, Bill Marks, Miranda, Jill, Phil Borre, Fillipe Borre, Katie Morris, Rhian Davies, Caroline Morns, Katrina, Poppy Millett, Ann, Jamy Wedge, Georgie Fay, Taryn Tainton, Stephen Fowler, Kim Wye, Phil O'Connor, Tom Wollen, Mishy Wye, Tim Harrow, Sam McCreedy, Georgia Litchfield, Jack Litchfield, Danny Taylor, Aphrodite Constantopolou, Laura Syvret, Fiona Tarbet, Helena Palma-Clarke, Tanid Palma-Clarke, Sophie, Paul Andrews, Roman Pitman, Karolyn Pitman, Charlotte Hall, Jazzie Curley, Amelia Browne, Jo Lowe, Becca Sangster, Joe Meredith, Bub'el Blower, Sam Ely, Timothy Holt, Mark Kirton, Emma Kirton, Carrie-Ann Grainger, Cristiane Del Fresno, Tim Cunningham, Ellora Bennett, Adam Harrison (age 4), Elliot Harrison (age 7), Ollie Lindsay-Clark (age 7), Izzy Lindsay-Clark (age 3), Clemmie (age 10), Kim, Derek, Alice Duport, Isabel of Mar, Lizzie Sawyer (age 4), Henry Burchell (age 72), Charlotte Fisher, Jasmine, Jessica Daughters, Lyndsey Archer, Lianne French, Lyndsay King, Charlotte Hugh, Stuart Marshaw, Emily Rubinstein, Tess Castillo Beesley, Paul Beesley, Catherine A., Paul, Alex Dean, Rowan Dean, Jamie Mirchandani, Stephen Fry, Lord of the Dance, Abbie Hurcombe (age 8), Ceri Hurcombe, Catherine Murrell, Chris Harms, Charlie Cormack, Caroline Moore, Craig Wye, Miranda Harrison, Lisa Rust, Steph Marston, Jess Melling, Katie Ramage, Hattie Coulson, Eleanor Pucci, Kathryn Hamill, Lauren Ives, Hannah Davies, Gemma Hamus, Natasha Inns, Katherine Mitchell, Catrin Andrews, Emily Jarrett, Kaleigh Copeland, Jennie Jewitt-Harris, Loraine Bore, Deeshan Puul, Janice Holt, Janet Medway, Alison Haydon, Kate Atkin, Meghan Cooper, Molly Cooper, Matthew Cooper, Lesley Cooper, Emma Syvret, Holly Storm, Doreen Hosking, Keith Hosking, Sinead Cocker, Jacob Howells Jones, Cait Kidd, Janet Jewitt, Atticus Kidd, Zeb Kidd, Oliver Jewitt-Harris, Linda Jackson, Maggi Smith, Peter Smith, Sue Merry, Jim Merry, Joan O'Dell, Pat Walsh, Rachel Hudson, Amy Mist, Peter Rabbit, Genevieve Fay, Cedric Day, Sofia Lahmann, Victor del Fresno, Lily McCrae, Beth Jennings, Emma Hooper, Steph Marshall, James Marshall, Rachel Marshall, Neil Pilling, Amy Pilling, Mary Hammill, Darren Freeman, Jackie Dean, Sarah King, Jayne Stanley, Celia Stanley, Paul Moscrop, Sonia Moscrop, Zangryus, Dammy, Lydia, Nila Murali, Amy George, Mari Metcalfe, Dominic, Phoebe Williams, Milly Williams, Sonia Williams, Miranda Harrison, Aimee Jewitt-Harris.


The only ones I couldn't include were the names I could not read.  I have also included names which do not appear to be real, but this is part of the randomness of the project.