Week 39: the end, waiting

Stone image, Mexico (photo: Heather Matthew 2011)

“in every beginning

there is the end, waiting”

~ Excerpt from the poem the end, waiting by  Heather Matthew, 2003

In every project the end waits with certainty. Yet in every ending are the seeds of new ideas, the development of concepts circled around time and again, repeating patterns of thoughts which won’t go away.

This week I have been reading about crop circles, vibrational fields of force formed by a combination of electromagnetic waves and sound vibrations.  These scientific precepts have been the basis for two of my most significant arts research projects. For my final Bachelor of Visual Arts project in 2012, I investigated Scottish physicist James Clerk Maxwell’s theory of electromagnetism which proved that electricity and magnetism were both waves which together formed electromagnetic fields of force. Four years later I undertook my Honours research investigation into the vibrational patterns of sound in water to create images of chaotic nature fractals.

Integral & Differential – (detail) screenprint. Heather Matthew 2012

Rereading my visual arts diaries from the past six years, I can see my interest in sacred geometry. My travels have instinctively led me to sacred sites all over the world, where humans have constructed pyramids, mosques, churches and temples in an attempt to heighten and intensify the earth’s vibrational energy force. The spirals and mandala images reflect our need to encode information in buildings and images to remind us of our cosmic connection.

My art has always been about interconnection; between people, nature and the cosmic realm. I am drawn to the intersection of science and metaphysics, for as humankind’s thinking develops and awakens, what was once considered ‘magic’ is now everyday science  eg.  electricity, television and the internet. My art attempts to capture something of the magic of science, the unknown we can glimpse but not yet understand with our thinking.

Art touches the heart on an intuitive level which can  bypass thinking. It can provide a first point of connection, something which moves us but we don’t know why. As artists we strive for connection, between ourselves and our work, between our work and our concepts and if we’re lucky and all the stars align, we make connection with our audience, which in turn propels us to make more work. It may be different, but it comes from the seeds of the previous work we have done, each building upon the foundations already laid. In the end, the beginning, waiting.