CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, NORTHRIDGE
Everything You’ve Seen is Real
A graduate project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements
For the degree of Master of Fine Arts in Art, Visual Arts
By
Marc Potter
May 2021
The graduate project of Marc Potter is approved:
______Professor Tim Forcum, M.F.A. Date
______Professor Erik Mark Sandberg, B.F.A. Date
______Professor Christian Tedeschi, M.F.A., Chair Date
California State University, Northridge
ii
Table of Contents
Signature Page ii
Abstract iv
Chapter 1: Aspirational Objects 1
Chapter 2: Carnival and the Absurd 2
Chapter 3: Building and Perseverance 4
Chapter 4: Genesis of Sur Veillance 6
Chapter 5: Time Travelling Clowns 8
Chapter 6: Evoke 11
Chapter 7: History of the Uncanny 14
Chapter 8: To the Stars 16
Chapter 9: Contradictions and Connections 18
Chapter 10: Lighter Than Air 20
Conclusion 24
Bibliography 25
Appendix 26
iii
Abstract
Everything You’ve Seen is Real
By
Marc Potter
Master of Fine Arts in Art, Visual Arts
Utilizing the idea of the American carnival and its imagery, I investigate the symbolism and mystery that clowns convey. Cultural perceptions of clowns vary from happy to sad, tragic to comic. Their lighthearted absurdity intrigues me and informs the complex nature of humans and their relationship to the clown within. Hollywood, the media, and a few bad actors have redirected perceptions of clowns to evoke people’s deepest fears. People are more concerned with the person beneath the façade.
Another aspect of my work explores the aspiration found in the simplicity of a kite. By rendering this familiar object in an unexpected material, clay, the object becomes stripped of its function. A kite is designed to fly; but when constructed from an impractical material like porcelain, the object is fragile and inadequate, while maintaining its aspirational intention. I am interested in this object’s inherent contradictions and the possibility of transcending them by actually flying. My attempts to fly the ceramic kite lives as a performance documented in video
iv
and photographs. The kite functions as art as well as a prop for a performance about frustration and futility. My repeated attempts to fly the kite fulfill the kite’s aspirational and visual reality, but its physical reality frustrates this possibility, and, in the end, I realize I have become the clown.
v
Chapter 1: Aspirational Objects
My work investigates ideas surrounding aspirational objects. A ceramic kite is an example; its form is designed to fly, but its materials hold it to the ground, it’s fragile, inadequate, but determined. When I first started making ceramic forms of flight, it was mainly satire. I wasn’t sure if it would take flight or even survive the kiln. I am interested in how this object can exist within these contradictions or possibly transcend them. I used an industrial sewing machine, treating the clay-like fabric to facilitate a real kite’s look and feel. At times, the process was tedious and full of failures, but eventually, I found a positive result that made me wonder if the kite would fly, so I tried. The form’s documentation lives in video clips and photos from a beach excursion, where I struggle to get the kite to take flight for a brief moment.
I employ clay to elevate objects and create visual tension through balance and instability. Pushing the boundaries of physics, my forms move beyond grappling with gravity to defying the medium of clay. The fragile materiality of clay underscores the idea of precariousness. The difference between fragility and breakability is the amount of value attributed to the object. This can reverberate as a reference to human life. While having a solid relationship with clay is essential, it is the act of making and building that is crucial for me.
Experimenting with multiplicity and scale asks viewers to confront their beliefs. Larger-than-life sculptures encourage wonder and curiosity and place viewers into a child’s perspective. Color refers to vivid memories, where the absence of color invites viewers to decipher the form, mimicking a dream state and blurring the line between dreams and memories. Dreams become memories, and memories influence dreams.
1
Chapter 2: Carnival and the Absurd
Recently my artwork has been focused on the idea of the carnival and the imagery of the clown. I explore the clown’s symbolism, looking to imbue my objects with some of the mysteries that I see. Clowns have different functions for different eras, reactions to them varying so much.
Some like clowns; some hate them. Some find them cute and fun, and others are disgusted, scared, or even indifferent. I find this range of responses intriguing. What attracts me most to clowns and carnival imagery is their light-hearted absurdity. I am trying to capture the essence of silliness in today's time and poke fun at societal norms, as it is a clown's role to convey the satire connected to daily life. Though images of clowns vary greatly, my work distills the imagery, possibly transcending the red nose and displaying a complex state beyond the one- liner or the obvious.
Jeff Koons blends the concerns and methods of Pop, Conceptual, and Appropriation art with craft-making and popular culture. Controversial and always engaging, his work explores contemporary obsessions with sex and desire, race, gender, celebrity, media, commerce, and fame. Jeff Koons’s most iconic works are his balloon dogs. They look like the kind of souvenir clowns make at birthday parties. Koons said, “I’ve always enjoyed balloon animals because they’re like us. We’re balloons. You take a breath, and you inhale, it’s an optimism. You exhale, and it’s kind of a symbol of death” (And somewhere, a clown just cried…)
(DailyArtMagazine.com).
A sacred object has many forms. The object can be cute, religious in nature, or even a magical object. While not having access to kilns due to the pandemic, I was forced to venture into other manufacturing means to convey my message. Using the two visual languages of
Painting and Sculpture, crossing and twisting of genres, I attempt to say with art the things that I cannot verbally communicate. Who is the clown, and who is the joke? Although my efforts are earnest and wholehearted, sometimes the translation of thoughts into actions can vary dramatically. 2
3
Chapter 3: Building and Perseverance
My work is laborious. I begin with a small idea, then add to it. In the beginning, I constructed small clowns to convey a feeling of overwhelming reproduction. Once I found this led to anthropomorphic interpretations, I ran with that idea and tried to build height out of them.
Several failed attempts led me to the process of stacking in a more formulated manner. Building clown cubes, 3 x 3 x 3, making building blocks out of the clown form to transcend identity.
Interlocking cubes was just what I needed, and I thought of milk crates as I created.
The arch was something entirely different. Beginning with a wooden form, I began to stack the ceramic clowns like Legos, inserting each of their heads into the bottoms of the upright clown. Guessing and adjusting for curvature, I was able to make a flow of clowns that could support one another. This was fine until I reached the “key clowns”. I needed a central support system that could tie together the shape of an arch. Once completed and thinking this was the most challenging part, I needed to remove the form. Unfortunately, I had to fill all the cracks before removing the arch support. I began filling cracks on the front side, then the back. Once I returned to the front, I realized that they were drying and shrinking faster than I could fix them.
After a long, 12-hour day of trying, I realized I was fighting a losing battle. As the clowns dried, they shrank, causing the “key clowns” to be unattached and the pillars to rise off the ground.
Near the end of this excursion, the inner clowns began to pop and shatter due to the weight redistribution.
There was one final chance to get the form out before it imploded. Using the help of another student, I lifted the arch while he attempted to move the form. The clowns were crumbling in my hands when I finally gave up. Pushing the material beyond its capabilities was once again my difficulty. It was at that moment that I saw a glimpse of light between the structure and the form. I had released it. The next few minutes were spent carefully sliding the form out and inserting a ready-made supportive pillar of clowns. It was free standing. About this time, another student walked by, and seeing the structure, exclaimed, “Wow, that thing looks 4
like it has a ton of tension,” unaware of the ridiculous energy exerted to keep it erect. The next several months were in exile. Banned from school due to Covid, every chance I could get, I would try to fire the defunct kiln and try to learn about the grafting of electric kiln parts to run a gas kiln with sticky solenoids that are obsolete and inferior. After 30 or 40 failed attempts to get the kiln over 200 degrees, I gave up. One year later I was finally back in the lab and got it to fire.
Only making it to terracotta temperatures, it began to pop like popcorn. I immediately turned the kiln off, shut the damper, and was ready for any outcome. When I opened the kiln, I immediately saw shards along the edges, but two towers remained intact as well as the arch.
5
Chapter 4: Genesis of Sur Veillance
During this process of trying to gain height, I began throwing large, very large. Using 500 pounds of clay, I began to build. At one point, I was able to sit inside the structure, stacking a basketball-sized head and then the hat to make it over 6’ tall. Larger than life with judgmental eyes would be ominous and omnipotent: a father figure of sorts, meant to be viewed as eyes from above. The eyes were still not above the viewer at this point, so I made a pedestal for him to sit on. Adding moving LED eyes gave it life and sentience. My art is intended for an audience.
Due to campus closure and an unavailable audience, I used video to show a sense of three- dimensionality. This larger-than-life piece was not meant to be viewed alone but with a sea of minions. I dragged thousands of pounds of art to the beach for a site-specific installation. More than a dozen supportive friends helped in this huge undertaking. The hardest part was to get
Sur Veillance to the site at the beach. Purchasing a lift cart, I could get the clown out of the truck, rolling it 500’ on tarps to the location. Another 12-hour day finds me alone loading my art until nearly midnight. Enslaving clay for this massive undertaking and then spending countless hours covering my tracks as if to make it look plastic or fiberglass. Sur Veillance is still in progress as I bring the giant behemoth to life. LED eyes and a sound-activated button add to the senses. Currently, I am working on a remote-control pedestal on which I can transport the massive sculpture. Giving movement to a once static monolith will complete this piece.
While looking back at this piece, I realized that one possible supernatural incident steered me towards my last painting. In this life-size painting, I rendered the clown coming out of the canvas as leaving his undesirable containment and entering our reality. Using many plastic and fiberglass body parts, including poseable mannequin arms, I began to shape the creature into a gesture. Balancing the “sculpture” at this point was complex and had to be guesstimated due to many parts sticking out, while balancing on one shoe. Though the construction of the painting that became a sculpture was inherently difficult, once it was roughed
6
out, I knew that I was onto something big. Coming to fruition was a clown emerging from a painting. This emerging clown is my biggest fear.
Through my years, I have had experiences that shaped who I am and what I make.
Unaware of these factors until I was forced to think about them made sense and allowed me to pursue its origin. Soon after reflection, I discovered the original clown painting that had been watching over me for years, with its eyes seemingly moving, was informing my work, or at least giving me the outlet to describe it without words.
7
Chapter 5: Time Travelling Clowns
A clown thrives on its audience. One goal of a clown is to bring satire and comedy to light. Through persuasion and prejudice, or fear, the original view can be twisted and distorted, eventually producing anxiety. This anxiety is because people are unsure what they are looking at and don't know how to read it or understand what they see. Ideally, I would love to portray clowns as a symbol of hope, like superheroes. Unfortunately, society's perception of clowns is distorted. Views of clowns originate from jesters to priests holding magical powers, conducting ceremonies, and pointing out the King’s idiosyncrasies. The degree of uncanniness can directly affect how it is absorbed. Sigmund Freud popularized the “uncanny” as a reason for fear.
Uncanny is described as something both familiar and unfamiliar at the same time. The more realistic it is, the more we can relate to it. The more distorted, elongated, pronounced, or exaggerated, the more uncanny and the less we relate to it and are comfortable with it. I take the simple image of a clown and distill it down to make it more acceptable, turning the clown into a symbol rather than an entity.
Clowns are an integral part of today's society. They are as old as civilization itself.
Jesters and clowns would satirize leaders, as they were the only ones with the privilege to do so. They served a socio-religious role, the job of the priest and clown being interchangeable.
In 1500, the Italian harlequin first appeared in his red patterned costume. His role was that of a light-hearted servant, often interacting to disrupt the plans of his master. Usually pursuing his love interest, the harlequin inherits his physical agility and his trickster qualities, as well as his name, from a mischievous “devil” character in Medieval passion plays.
Moving from Italy to France to England in the late 16th century, the Harlequin evolved into modern clowning, which began in England with Philip Astley, a former cavalry Sergeant
Major. He hired acrobats, rope-dancers, and jugglers between his equestrian displays. While the beginnings of the Circus are credited to Philip Astley, the originator of the modern clown image is Joseph Grimaldi. Around 1800 he aided the clown’s evolution into the Harlequin, who 8
turned into more of a buffoon with antics. Grimaldi had such an impact on today's clowns that a fellow clown is often referred to as a “Joey.” Clowning carries a long line of traditions, skills, and original material such as patented makeup, costumes, and trademark gags.
The clown image is often a vehicle for political satire in many countries. The clown provides checks and balances through parody. One of the most famous European court jesters was Nasir Ed Din. One day the king glimpsed himself in a mirror, and saddened by how old he looked, started crying. The other members of the court decided they had better cry as well.
When the king stopped crying, everyone else stopped crying, except Nasir Ed Din. When the king asked Nasir why he was still crying, he replied, "Sire, you looked at yourself in the mirror but for a moment and you cried. I have to look at you all the time” Kawaguchi, Judit. “Kite
Artist.”
In its early days, the United States was a developing country with few cities large enough to sustain long-term resident circuses. Settlers were steadily pushing the American frontier, establishing new communities in the process of a westward expansion. To reach their public, showpeople had little choice but to travel light and fast. Circuses were so popular in
America that they took to the road, or better yet the tracks. Through refining tradition and creating a new one, several different kinds of clowns were born. These circus clowns included the Hobo, who was migratory and found work where he traveled. The Hobo is usually down on his luck but maintains a positive attitude. Next is the Tramp, who is migratory and does not work; he is also typically down on his luck and depressed. Furthermore, there is the Bum Clown who does not travel or work. The Tramp was conceived in 1874 and portrayed African
Americans made homeless by the Civil War. The character was based on blackface minstrel clowns, which originated the white mouth used by Tramp clowns. They studied African
American culture to portray it accurately. Mimicking an African American dance called the Buck and Wing, they introduced to the American stage something that later became tap dancing.
9
Blackface clowns performed in circuses from at least the 1810s and maybe before and were a staple by the 1820s. The wide red or white mouth painted on by modern clowns is a remnant of the blackface mask.
10
Chapter 6: Evoke
Clowns remind humanity to laugh at itself even in its seriousness. It is a need that is part of the human condition. We have an inherent need to see others struggling more than us to feel better about our mediocre realities. Clowns evoke laughter, eliciting a whole rainbow of emotions that are otherwise difficult to communicate.
One of the more popular mid-century clowns is Bozo. In 1949, Bozo started as an illustrative read-along book for a storytelling record album. With its popularity growing, local television stations produced their own Bozo shows featuring the character “Bozo the Clown."
The show was so popular that by 1978 it was one of the first to broadcast via satellite and cable, influencing the 1980s and the birth of Ronald McDonald and the evil clown character known as
Pennywise the Dancing Clown. Stephen King, the creator of “It,” stated in a 2013 interview that he came up with the idea for Pennywise after asking himself what scared children "more than anything else in the world?".
Clowns provide a way to laugh at others to make us feel better about ourselves. Another icon providing decades of laughs is Charlie Chaplin. He was an English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the silent film era. He became a worldwide icon through his screen persona, The Tramp, and is considered one of the most influential figures in the history of the film industry. From Bozo to It, the most common theme is the emotion they evoke. While some love clowns, others are afraid of them. For most people, a fear of clowns is probably based on a combination of popular culture and human psychology. “Coulrophobia” is the term used for someone who has an irrational fear of clowns. The fear of clowns is the most common fear among children. Clowns distort their features for effect. The significant alterations in a clown's face may alter a person's appearance so much that a figure is lifelike enough to be disturbing, but not realistic enough to be pleasant. This can easily frighten a child so much that
11
they carry this phobia into adulthood. A clown’s behavior is meant to be funny, but children fear clowns because of the uncertainty they evoke.
There is something disconcerting about something which is nearly lifelike but is not. The obscuring of the face is often seen as a threat multiplier. Ultimately we judge people by looking at their faces. While the psychological core and personality of an individual dressed up in an outfit with a mask is still that same person, the anonymity provided leads to the person becoming more disinhibited. In essence, such people are taking on other identities at least momentarily. Makeup can be useful because it hides not only a person’s identity, but also their feelings. Worse, the makeup can result in mixed signals. For example, when the clown has a painted-on smile but is frowning or has exaggerated brows and lips, which might produce psychological discomfort. The emotions that clowns elicit are varied.
Without participation, there is no meaning or connection. Clowns, in particular, have the peculiar ability to make us laugh just by being visible. Any exaggerated action becomes humorous. Watching or even interacting with one can be a therapeutic experience. They remind us to lighten up and laugh at ourselves. The perfect example of this is “America's Funniest
Home Videos.”
Clowns evolved as a response to the need for laughter, and in turn, they symbiotically need an audience. Clowns are a necessary part of today's society, with their inherent skill to point out the absurd--especially when it is right in front of us. These purveyors of happiness are still thriving; with satire at an all-time high, clowns will undoubtedly continue to fright and delight and remain objects of compassion, commercialism, and confusion. “People need dramatic examples to shake them out of apathy, and I can't do that as Bruce Wayne. As a man, I'm flesh and blood, I can be ignored, I can be destroyed; but as a symbol I can be incorruptible, I can be everlasting” (Batman Begins, 2005).
Chapter 7: History of the Uncanny 12
Each decade or time has a different view of the clown. Its image is constantly changing within society. The persona I connect with is the innocence of the circus clown from mid-century onward until about the 1970s. The silly oversized shoes were not introduced as a threat into society until Hollywood, and the media redirected the image of the clown; it's my purpose to bring back memories and the light of a more innocent clown era. A clown’s makeup is painted.
We might wear masks now in the current pandemic; therefore we are hiding a dimension of our lives behind the facade. Life itself can be frustrating. Beyond daily occurrences that may influence the day’s outcome, masks are the underlying theme of health, both mentally and physically. People put on a happy face like a cartoon and say everything is fine when in reality, we are struggling. The biggest frustration in life is that we are alive, and that is fragile. Humans are sturdy and strong but are as fragile as a piece of porcelain half a millimeter thick. We are fragile, we are breakable. Sometimes these aspirations can be refined down to a symbol or a sacred object.
Sacred objects are things that we want to possess, whether they are worth money, have religious value or are something that we think we need or want. A toy is an object for a child to play with, typically a model or miniature replica of something. A prop is an item held by actors on a stage to make the action seem more realistic. A talisman is an object, typically an inscribed ring or stone, that is thought to have magic powers and bring good luck, but it can also be an object held like a charm to avert evil and bring good fortune.
Conceptually these aspirational objects were initially proposed as an impossible task.
Dreaming up ways to create clay so thin and light that it might fly seemed absurd. A personality is composed of a persona, an ego, and experience. A symbol can be an everlasting persona.
Creating a self-portrait can be difficult if you do not know what you look at. Reflections vary from a mirror to a pond with ripples. In the time a reflection takes to appear, the image can change that quickly. Our lives are a combination of experiences, some of them straightforward and easy to process while others are not. Signs are meant to show us the way, the way to go, a one-way, 13
wrong way, fast, slow, or caution. Signs can be not so literal as well as bad omens. Black cats, ladders, a coin on the ground, or even how marshmallows clump together in your hot chocolate might be read as fate. Looking for these signs and reading them can help, but opening yourself up to understanding these signs can be a bit more difficult.
14
Chapter 8: To the Stars
“To lie on the grass and gaze at a beautiful kite above is the best feeling in the world.” Tetsuya Kishida
One of my first memories was when I was five years old, receiving my first kite and being fascinated by its ability for flight. The Wright Brothers, NASA, and everything in between were part of my fascination with physics and the universe. Humans yearning for flight is one of the oldest quests. Looking at the same heavens as inventors and famous astrologers connected me with them, the stars, planet earth, and its beginnings, and I realize how small we are.
I began to fly steerable stunt kites until I graduated to present day Power Kites.
Gradually purchasing larger and larger kites to get that feel of the pull, I even tried to buy “Thor's
Hammer,” a 13’ stunt kite, essentially a hang glider on strings. Luckily it was out of print, and I purchased my first Ram Air kite. This kite does not need spars or sticks for structural support and is essentially several bags sewn together to scoop up the air. Upon receiving my first three- meter power kite, I was hooked. Every day I was flying several hours until I couldn't hold on anymore. Eventually, I wanted to use this force for movement. Beginning to weld some vehicle steerable by my feet, I employed this power through a kite. During my research, and after several months trying to invent the sport, I discovered an existing sport called Kite Buggying.
Completely contagious, I flew kites every day. I began to gain strength like never, before and my chest grew 6” within the first year. Eventually, I found like-minded friends kiting in desert events.
Gradually gaining the confidence to ride fast and eventually compete with the world's fastest kiters, I quickly realized that this extreme sport would create lasting injuries if I continued tempting fate by pushing physical boundaries and being at the whim of the wind. I have deep roots in this extreme sport, eventually aiding with importing the Peter Lynn Team Race Buggy from New Zealand and modifying it for runs on Ivanpah Lakebed, Primm, Nevada. Finding a sponsor (A Wind of Change) was crucial for success. Several additions and modifications were
15
needed for safety and speed. An added roll bar was implemented for safety and modified so the cross force would prohibit shearing off axle bolts at runs over 60 mph. Within a couple of years, the buggy that I had diligently worked on, along with the daring efforts of my good friend Brian
Holgate, achieved a World Record of 82.9 mph.
16
Chapter 9: Contradictions and Connections
A ceramic kite is an aspirational object. Its form is designed to fly, but its materials hold it to the ground; it is fragile, inadequate, but determined. When I first started making ceramic forms of flight, it was mostly satire. I was not sure if it would take flight or survive the kiln. I am interested in how this object can exist within these contradictions or possibly transcend them. I used an industrial sewing machine, treating the clay-like fabric to facilitate a real kite’s look and feel. At times, the process was tedious and full of failures, but eventually, I found a positive result that made me wonder if the kite would fly, so I tried. The form’s documentation lives in video clips and photos from a beach excursion as I struggle to get the kite to take flight for a brief moment.
I found I could let go of the clown imagery in the ceramic kite work but retain its essence.
Associated with ceramic tradition, the porcelain would be distorted by forcing it to be kinetic in this conversation. Disrupting the intended use and making it come alive destroys the history associated with the craft. Dreaming up ways to create clay so thin and light that it might fly seemed absurd. I employ clay to elevate objects and create visual tension through balance and instability. While having a solid relationship with clay is necessary, the act of making and building is more crucial than the specific medium. The materiality of clay, as fragile and breakable, underscores the idea of precariousness. Playfully repurposing forms through the media of clay questions function and explores the absurd and unexpected. My work reflects my experiences through emotion and representation. I create and combine shapes with each piece, incorporating unexpected media, culminating in a multi-sensory experience, often with unpredictable consequences. Clowns and paper airplanes conjure notions of childhood and innocence. I aim to evoke an emotional connection with the viewer, sometimes using humor as a tool for coping.
17
Chapter 10: Lighter Than Air
These flying machines began as an impossible idea, and construction would be the most significant challenge! Pondering ways of building them, I made some mock-up kites. It was pointed out that they needed to be much bigger in order to have enough surface area to fly possibly. The next round of kites utilized designs by top kite makers, specifically the President and Vice President of the American Kite Association. I wanted to create my own legacy in the kite world, although this time I would switch it up and use clay as my fabric. I could find no one who has attempted this, and I began to fear that I was making a wrong move. Determined by my pursuit of flight, I brainstormed how this would be possible.
Attempts at creating a matrix thin enough with a plaster mold and gauze was considered. I finally utilized a manufactured porcelain sheet riddled with polymers and adhesives in order to achieve the .5mm thickness needed for weight reduction. When moistened, this clay becomes like a wet chamois, or, in thin strips, similar to noodles. I decided to sew my construction because the original scoring wasn’t working. I physically sewed the pieces together with a layer of slip in the middle. Everywhere I pierced the clay, the slip would flow, also perforating the material making it even more fragile. Obsessed with sewing these kites with Cotton thread, I trenched through several machines. Eventually 10 kites were made, and three made it out of the kiln. Support forms for the wings made from the same material allowed the intended shape to be retained. Invoking the dihedral is key to flight as it mimics the shape of a wind-loaded kite. Since the kite cannot flex, it needed to be shaped for a specific wind speed, meaning that its range of flyable wind would be small. It not only needed to be light, but also rigid and strong enough to withstand 15 mph of wind supported by a small thin string bridle. The kite is designed with 6 tails to help with stabilization and trailing edge lift.
I consulted top professionals in the industry using CAD design know-how to determine the ideal fixed wing flying object. These were a morph of a plane and a kite. Three designs originally existed, however, only two of them made it to firing. The “Flying Nun,” with its ribbed 18
support on the extraneous curves and firing forms made of the same material, was able to hold most of its shape during a cone 10 firing, retaining the dihedral necessary for flight and mimicking the shape of a seagull’s profile and adding supports in crucial zones. Reinforcing the leading edge with another layer of thin clay is necessary without the use of sticks in order to keep it rigid. Another support was added across the peak of the wing to help it not fold up on itself while being blasted with wind. The biggest challenge was to have enough surface area, while retaining strength in key places and minimizing weight wherever possible.
This project began as a joke three years ago and seemed impossible but definitely deserved a shot. Since the final product weighed less than 3 ounces, and had a 24” wingspan, I thought it likely to fly. The best chance of survival and repeated attempts would be over soft sand or even water. As I have been flying kites most of my life at the beach, this location was perfect for me.
Getting the kite to the beach was an adventure and process in itself. One stack of kites imploded after hitting a small bump in the road. I struggled getting the kite to the windy beach without it snapping like a potato chip. As I passed by these beach goers, I thought, “These people have never seen a ceramic kite, and I’m not sure they would understand.” I went to a secluded part of the beach and began assembling the bridle and finding the angle of attack.
This is all theory and unprecedented: a ceramic kite. I could find no references to ceramic kites being made prior, and at first this scared me tremendously. Gaining composure again, I continued. My clay kites are so thin, the light shines through them. As soon as these lighter- than-air objects are created, immediately the question is, “Will they fly?
Will they live, or die?” At a certain point I’m not sure if it is important that they actually fly, or if it's enough to remain in wonder if they would. All objects beg to be handled. “My video” shows me feebly attempting to fly the kite. Although I was confident it could work, I didn't even know if the kite would make it through the day. Several hours of failing attempts were made with countless adjustments and different techniques. Using porcelain this way becomes absurd, and 19
almost argues with the materiality which is designed to be functional. Although I did get the kite into the sky, it is debatable on how well it flew. Earnestly believing that this object made from dirt would fly, I tried everything in my arsenal. Time was of the essence. Not being on campus near a kiln only gave me one chance to fire these in time to get a test flight with documentation before my third committee review. Countless hours of research and development were spent on this parody to bring it to life.
This is an ongoing endeavor, and documentation of future flights are planned in order to add to contemporary practice and further discussions of past kites. There is a long history with kites dating back to Egyptian times, transcending history through use in wars with man-lifting kites, and even Goya depicting one in “The Kite,” in which a serene setting becomes a welcome break from the toils of the modern world. Possibly with countless more hours of refining shape, form-making and custom firing techniques, this project will get off the ground. I still believe these kites and planes will fly, and it is most exciting to me when someone reads the project as a joke or a desire that cannot be realized. Always tying back to childhood, kites come alive in the sky, and that's how they bring happiness to all who see them.
Using video as an element in my work allows me to bring life into it beyond still documentation. Most of my work is sculpture based and needs an audience. Trying to touch people aesthetically and psychologically, I bring elements of fear and joy into my pieces using humor and ask viewers to confront their beliefs and question reality. In order to portray flight or at least attempts at it, video has been instrumental in documenting this endeavor. Film gives a first-person view of the scene.
20
Conclusion
Aspirational Reality
“Art can be utilized as an information tool, transcending time by using symbols. Art as we know it began 100,000 years ago, and was made like nothing prior. Art was not meant to be eaten, not to provide shelter, but to symbolize something, or just to be. We have found a way to leave behind something that is distinctively human, a means to communicate however enigmatically.” Neil deGrasse Tyson
My personal experiences influence the way I look at the world and consequently, the way I make art. I intend to evoke multiple emotions, showing the complex human psyche fear has the power to distort. The experience I have while making it is sometimes of wonderment, often of frustration. During my time at CSUN, I have been portraying the futility of humans, sometimes using shocking or pronounced imagery. The stereotypical portrayal of the clown has changed for me, including the fading importance of the clown or radical ideas surrounding the carnivalesque and otherworldly scenarios. Not needing a nose or costume, I become the clown, the kites are my props, and my art is the center for laughter. This approach eliminates direct clown imagery while emphasizing the more ruckus, carnivalesque aspects in my work.
Like a clown might play with a balloon or stumble while attempting to juggle, I fly my ceramic kite. The kite is both an art object and a prop. As I perform the repetitive action of trying to fly the kite, it fulfills the kite’s aspirational and visual realities, even though it’s physical reality defies this possibility, and I become the clown.
21
Works Cited
Kawaguchi, Judit. “Kite Artist.” The Japan Times. March 2013. (pg. 16).
King, Stephen. It. CB Comicbook, Germany Interview, 2013. (pg. 11).
Koons, Jeff. Daily Art Magazine.com. Art History Stories, 2021. (pg. 2).
Nolan, Christopher. Batman Begins. Warner Bros., Syncopy, DC. 2005 (pg.13).
Nasir, Ed Din. Iranian Stories, Volume 40. Number 4, September 2007 (pg. 9).
Tyson, Neil deGrasse. Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey. (TV Mini-Series) Season 3, Episode 1, 2014 (pg 24).
Appendix
22
Figure 1. Ceramic Kite, Porcelain, Machines, 2020
23
Figure 2. Kite Video, Multimedia, 2020
24
Figure 3. Clown Army, Porcelain, 2019
25
Figure 4. Erector Set,, Porcelain, 2020
26
Figure 5 Kiln Load, Porcelain, 2020
27
Figure 6 Clown Arch, Porcelain, 2020
28
Figure 7 Sur Veillance Beginnings, Ceramic, 2020
29
Figure 8 Sur Veillance, Ceramic/Multimédia, 2021
30
Figure 9. Sur Veillance (Close-up) Ceramic, Paint, 2020
31
Figure 10 Clown Around (Progress), Electric Wheelchair, 2021
32
Figure 11 Breakthrough, Multimedia Painting, 2021
33
Figure 12 Peter Lynn Speed Buggy, 2015
34
Figure 13 Good Wind, Primm, Nevada, 2015
35
Figure 14 Ceramic Planes, 2020
36
Figure 15 Landsailor, Multimedia, 2019
37
Figure 16 I Am the Clown, 2019
38