The First (Pisces) (1973) was conceived during the 1970s and can be associated with the contemporaneous explorations of astrology, mandalas, and esoteric systems done by many artists and in Western psychology generally during this decade. An ink drawing, this mandala was more seminal in my development as an artist in terms of process than in terms of the kinds of idea systems it evokes.
The three process elements of note are (1) the background texture; (2) a patched section—born of an accidental ink spill— on the right, and near the edge of the circle with the beast-like face; and (3) the black-and-white contrast.
First, in terms of the background texture, it was with this work that I began to conceptualize the importance of perceptual elements in my process and in terms of creating my personal visual language (or style). To put this another way, this was the first time I recognized the importance of both cognitively and intuitively manipulating tools to develop a work. The textured background is comprised of tiny, tiny circles made with lines of different widths. Of course, the process eventually gives form to the art (or object).
Koh-i-nor mechanical pens aided here in achieving the textural background pattern that served to bring a subtle vitality and musicality to the work. Point sizes of these pens range from very fine to very broad. Thus they are capable of achieving an engraver’s perfection or looser, broader markings. Online and/or reproductions of the image do not lend themselves to perceiving how the varied pen points created depth in the actual work. The subtle textured background is clearer when engaging with the actual work. Conceptualizing a path toward this perceptual affect/effect came about during artmaking. Indeed, how one sees the art as it is created was, and remains, an exciting element in my work.
Second, this piece ushered in an ongoing fascination with black-and-white contrast. The monochromatic tab on this page surveys works in this category.
Finally, repairing rather than abandoning this work after an ink spill represented a commitment to the idea that in life mistakes happen and we do the best we can to live with them as we endeavor to move beyond them. This has also been a guiding principle in my art. In this case, archival materials were not used for the paper or the glue. Over fifty years later the patch remains hard to see, although it is evident when touched.
In other words, as process came to the fore, the intellectual and philosophical underpinning of The First (Pisces) lost their luster. In terms of my oeuvre, my thinking on this subject becomes clearer when comparing the first Pisces to the larger 1984 Pisces, which was a pivotal piece. A much cleaner work, the second work marked a change in direction.
The later Pisces incorporates the Pisces symbol into the composition, yet is not a narrative or symbolic work. The ink painting’s vibrancy comes about due to the formal elements (spirals and patterning) and working with an artmaking system I had been developing using the different pen widths the Koh-i-Noor pens provided. Rather than conceptualizing a rigid theory, I began to “think” of the line widths as if they created musical chords one could see. Thus a sequence of markings was a means to add a perceptual musicality to a composition.
Thus. the strikingly more holistic 1984 Pisces (below) is more about affect/effect, perceptual contrast and abstraction than the denser, earlier work featured on this page. Rather than the mandala-type of inquiry of The First (Pisces), in which symbolism and philosophical notations provide a framework and an undercurrent, the symbols used here align more with how formal features organize a composition. Work by artists such as Sol LeWitt and Bridget Riley come to mind as analogs. In other words, the emphasis is on a visual syntax that is based on systems, grids, and perceptual engagement rather than symbolic storytelling.
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Amy Ione
Title: The First (Pisces)
Date: 1973
Medium: Ink on paper
Dimensions: 7.25×10.25 (unframed); 13.5x 17 (matted and framed)
Signed
Catalog Number: 30687
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After engaging with artmaking for a number of years, it seemed that explanations of artmaking juxtaposed with the kind of process elements I initially discovered while working on The First (Pisces) were more important to my practice than symbolic, esoteric, and philosophical musings on art. Because what I read about process didn’t seem to express what I wanted to read, I began to write my own books. The four titles below speak to process; artmaking; creativity; and how art, science, and culture are interwoven:
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