Decisions and desire

"Decisions and desire" was born from the unpremeditated encounter between pictures of different nature.

“Decisions and desire” was born from the unpremeditated encounter between pictures of different nature: figurative representation vs. abstractions; the classic horizontal format vs. the exaggerated verticality of images produced with mobile phones; red vs. green, opposite colours in the colour circle; intention vs. chance.

The reds

The ten colour configurations were produced involuntarily during a photographic workshop that aimed to examine walking as a process and as the final artwork. At the same time I was choosing which gesture to inaugurate while holding the camera, another device was operating in an autonomous way in my pocket.

The landscape

Living in a new country for a couple of months, I was feeling lonely and yearned to connect with other people. This was the first motivation to sign up for “The act of walking”. The need to make sense of the photographs I had been taking of this unfamiliar landscape came second.

The workshop

The programme included an initial talk, where the professor would introduce artists whose body of work was based on wandering and took place on a summer Saturday in the countryside of a small village. To see final works before going out into production can either inspire or play the opposite role of blocking. So, with my inspiration eclipsed by the sight of so many projects, we set off in a group along a trail.

From the very first steps, some of the participants were collecting branches, rubbish, and other objects, whether physical or pictorial. My head was spinning in a void of ideas, perhaps due to the excess of stimuli: the day was sunny and very pleasant, the landscape was graceful and the participants, all artists from different fields, were quite appealing.

Just as I was beginning to feel uncomfortable with my lack of artistic impulse, the professor approached me and asked what I was considering doing. I laughed, confessed my blockage and we continued chatting until we came to a bifurcation. I stopped, announced “here’s something that interests me” and raised the camera.

The crossroads, with the imposition of decision-making about which way to go, was the perfect metaphor for my indecision. I was satisfied with this assumption, which could be further elaborated later, and continued photographing all the forks that showed up. Under less pressure, I was able to enjoy the rest of the day.

The aftermath

It wasn’t until I got home that I found the series of photos and video on my mobile phone, created without my knowledge thanks to the movements of my body during the walk.

The sunlight of the summer afternoon had been filtered through the orange linen of the trousers I was wearing, producing still and moving images with wonderful tonal variations. I extracted a few frames from the video and built a palette of reds from them. I then came up with a name for each hue, a composition that mixes the terminology used in paint with micro-narratives that suggest the spectrum of emotions that I experienced that day, which were felt but not externalised.

The red palette

Morning rose a perfect day

Radiant coral pleasant surprise

Fluorescent orange too many distractions

Intense rust I want them all

Permanent vermillion inspiration gone

Luminous crimson I like the professor

Opaque salmon nothing really new there

Bright cerise we’ll meet again

Deep brown he already has someone

Vibrant cardinal repeating the pattern