Yesterday, at my internship, I received an assignment from my boss to print out a bunch of designer lookbooks. Told to work at a quick pace, I printed about 15 files; one right after the other. I figured it would take a while to print, so I decided to wait a few minutes. In the meantime, I scanned the latest disco-inspired looks for Marc Jacob’s spring collection. All of the sudden, my boss stormed in the room frantically demanding the new prints. I calmly told her that they were currently printing and that I was just about to head down to the copy room to check the status. As soon as she left, I became frantic myself. I ran to the copy room only to see a red light flashing from the printer screen, indicating a paper jam. Apparently, you can only print one document at a time. Not fifteen. I opened all sorts of compartments until I found the source of the problem. I pulled out a piece of paper now resembling one of those oriental hand fans. I cooled myself down as the printer started to warm up again. I stuffed the crumpled deterrent into the trash, but a few minutes later, I pulled it out, realizing its visual appeal.
The jammed paper reminded me of an exhibit I saw last Spring Break at MOMA in New York City. The exhibit was named Paper: Pressed, Stained, Slashed, Folded. The works displayed were simple, yet visually compelling. I was specifically drawn to a series by Dorthea Rockburne called Locus. The series consists of five large pieces of paper, all in a row. Rockburne’s decision to display the papers like this is an important aesthetic choice. It leads the viewer to first see the five pieces as a collection and then move closer to the piece. Looking up close, I found that the paper was folded multiple times, some folds lighter than the others. The intricate folds are compositionally balanced creating a unique design within each piece. The folds intersect at one point on each sheet, hence the title. The folds in the paper also create shapes and shadows within the canvas. Although this work is a simple concept and does not exaggerate artistic skill or craftsmanship, I feel that Rockburne is expressing an important idea. There is a quiet complexity to her work. Manipulating a basic canvas to make shapes and figures transforms the canvas into a medium itself. Rockburne’s work has inspired me to find beauty in simplicity, especially in these economic times, when art-making can become expensive.
