What is art?
The question looms large over Sorted Books, a cooperative exhibition featuring the work of ; students from Literary Journalism, taught by Jennifer Brice; and Photojournalism, taught by Linn Underhill.
The pieces, on display through Feb. 26 in the , are formed by stacking books in a particular order so that the titles create simple poems with complex messages. Photos of Katchadourian鈥檚 poems stretch around the walls. They lead to tangible sortings prepared by 新澳彩开奖结果 undergraduates.
Katchadourian selected three texts as a foundation for every student鈥檚 work: The Bullfighter Checks Her Makeup by Susan Orlean, Regarding the Pain of Others by Susan Sontag, and Consider the Lobster by David Foster Wallace. Class members added volumes from their own libraries to round out the lyrics.
The collaboration culminated in an open lecture, sponsored by the , on Feb. 4.
On screen, California-born Katchadourian, her Finnish mother, and her Armenian father each try to shed their native accents. On c.d., the artist explores alarming similarities between the sounds of South American birdcalls and the cry of an urban anti-theft device.
Through photographs, the daughter retraces her mother鈥檚 childhood. On display, she demonstrates how to create a pre-modern Twitter account using a telescope and a 17th-floor office window.
鈥淪ometimes there will be something that I end up engaging 鈥 something I鈥檝e been noticing or thinking about for longer than I even realized,鈥 she told the audience. 鈥淎nd it ends up becoming an art project.鈥
The original idea for Sorted Books took shape during a vacation with friends in 1993. The crew agreed to create art out of materials on-site, and Katchadourian was drawn to the library. She began to move books around and make phrases from the titles. By the end of the weekend, she had not only created a series of statements, but she had also invented a new, accessible art form.
It鈥檚 that form that 新澳彩开奖结果 students had a chance to share with Katchadourian during her time on campus 鈥 a form that tries to answer the question, 鈥淲hat is art?鈥
Close observation.