Through marks, figures and the use of space on a sheet of paper, children gradually seek to understand and use depth as a new dimension of representation. Space is no longer confined to the page: it opens up and extends into the distance, creating another world governed by the same visual rules as the reality we perceive. Mastering perspective marks an important advance in consciousness and in the ability to organise forms in front of and behind one another. The third dimension corresponds to a broadening of perception and representation as a whole.
Entering into phenomena
Three-dimensional space depicted on a surface seeks to simulate both physically perceived space and the mental space of inner representation.
These two kinds of depth—the perceived and the represented—have similarities and differences. We tend to regard external space as “real” and imagined space as “illusory”, yet both can be reality or fiction depending on how we look at them.
What changes is our relationship with these two kinds of three-dimensional space. They are different realities: one physical, the other psychological.
What is possible in physical reality may not be possible in psychological reality, and vice versa.
But does a painting—a physical, external representation of inner space—not exist somewhere between these two worlds?
Depth in a work of art is as malleable as depth in the imagination, but, to be perceived as depth, it must follow the visual rules of perspective and of the volumes of bodies shaped by physical light. Elements of physics are thus integrated with elements of imaginative representation. This harmonious, structural fusion is what makes the allegories of dreams, for example, feel real. Their evocative power comes precisely from their existence within the rules of perception, rather than in isolation from the world.
Once again, we see that consciousness never operates in isolation from the world. Art offers a meeting point for this structural fusion: a space that is neither pure perception nor pure representation.
In this workshop we will study the distinctive features of space in art and its many psychological and formal meanings.
Artistic and Technical Objectives
To understand the relationship between form and space. To study volumetric composition.
Existential Objectives
To understand the correspondences between forms in space and mental and emotional contents. To develop and expand inner space, or the Space of Representation.
Spiritual Objectives
To connect with our essence as “spatial” beings, who exist in and through the space in which we can fulfil our needs.
Workshop Topics: Forms as space itself; observed reality and the observer; the Space of Representation; altering space as a language; the spatial organisation of inner experiences; hidden space and the action of form; discovering the symbol; changes in space in relation to levels and states of consciousness and to physical and optical conditions.