Friday 13 November 2009

Laura Kuch

Laura Kuch

Transcendental Me, 2009

Text performed on the wall by Fatos Ustek

Laura Kuch, has asked me to transform her work from an idea to a presence. Transcendental Me, 2009 is composed of a sentence written on the wall of the gallery premises by myself. The work is a text on the wall reading ‘I was here’, which I am writing on the wall over and over again (also erasing the former failed ones) until I feel that I reach the point where I have replicated Kuch’s handwriting. The replication or the approximation of her original handwriting is a way of enabling Kuch’s presence in her absence. Kuch articulates her piece by saying: ‘Graffiti has existed since ancient times, dating back to Ancient Greece and the Roman Empire, leaving traces of the existence of its maker and a proof of his presence on a particular place ever since. ‘I was here’ can be found in places everywhere around the world, if it’s the Eiffel Tower or the toilet in the pub around the corner. But what happens when somebody else gives proof of my presence at a place where I have never been before and writes down ‘I was here’ imitating my handwriting as I asked Fatos to do. Can a part of me then be localized there - because it’s supposed to be my handwriting, because Fatos thought of me while writing on the wall, because it’s my artwork which is placed there and my artworks are always a part of me, because Fatos is also my friend and therefore she is a part of me and I am part of her – hence she maybe took some part of me with her to Skopje? Right now another part of me stays physically in London while the other parts and traces of me are spread out through time and space. And maybe a part of me is with you right now dear reader…’

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