Wisława Szymborska, Polish poet who was awarded the 1996 Nobel Prize in Literature, captured the essence of passing time in a poem ‘The Three Oddest Words’ which offers a brilliant point of reference for discussing passage of time with regard to art objects:
“When I pronounce the word Future, / the first syllable already belongs to the past.
When I pronounce the word Silence, / I destroy it.
When I pronounce the word Nothing, / I make something no non-being can hold.”
Temporality is inherent in the nature of works of art, just like all other objects of material culture. Conservation may only delay the process of decay, and documentation, which also has its material form, is nothing more than an imperfect attempt to capture a fleeting moment.
In a paper we discuss the temporal aspect of objects referring to the example of Mateusz Okoński, internationally acclaimed Polish middle generation artist, collector, antiquarian and designer of exhibitions. His artistic practice defies classification. As an artist, he combines cultural codes, the material of his art is often exhibition design, and the heart of his artistic work is a huge collection that makes up a contemporary cabinet of curiosities, which is also - as in modern times - the home of an erudite collector.
Timelessness of the objects will be viewed across the timelessness of a collection. Museums by definition attempt to offer objects they behold the eternal duration. Private collection in turn can be viewed as the race of generations, taking over for a moment objects that other collectors had before. Struggle with temporality is then at least twofold, it regards the materiality of the object and integrity of the collection.
Presentation will be in fact a performative audio paper which will build dramaturgy with sound, and not, as befits the history of art, with images. Instead of showing the objects and their arrangements on slides, they will be played by an audio artist John Beauchamp. With a set of ultrasensitive dynamic microphones he recorded sounds of the collection in Okoński’s cabinet of curiosities with a commentary of the owner. Soundscape of a particular artistic space which brings an array of discursive topics will intertwine with a narration on the spot in Lyon stretched between an academic paper and curatorial commentary.
The audio paper will address the following issues: Audio forming a potential trace for art objects. Temporality of objects versus temporality of sensory experiences.
Audiosphere. Sound Experimentation 1980-2020. (2020) Museo Reina Sofía.
Bijsterveld, K. ed. (2013). Soundscapes of the Urban Past. Staged Sound as Mediated Cultural Heritage. transcript Verlag.
Brettkelly-Chalmers, K. (2019) Time, Duration and Change in Contemporary Art. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Groom, A. (2021) Time. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Lehmann, A. S. ed. Studies in Art & Materiality - series
Dr Katarzyna Jagodzińska is an Assistant Professor at the Institute of European Studies, Jagiellonian University in Krakow, head of the Europa Nostra Heritage Hub for Central and Eastern Europe and first Director for Programming in the Toy Museum in Krakow. She is art historian specialising in museums studies. Curator of contemporary art. Author of five books on museums, including ‘Museums and Centers of Contemporary Art in Central Europe after 1989’, Routledge, 2020. Member of ICOM and AICA.
John Beauchamp is a sound artist, independent audio producer and studio sound engineer at Free Range Productions, an audio production and podcasting company he co-founded back in 2020 with two colleagues he met during his decade of news editing and live broadcasting at Polskie Radio. Author of creative radio features and cutting edge sound walks. His materials are broadcasted internationally, including the BBC and English section of the Polish Press Agency.
The performative audio paper discusses the temporal aspect of objects assembled in a collection referring to the example of Mateusz Okonski, internationally acclaimed Polish middle generation artist, collector, antiquarian and designer of exhibitions. Instead of showing the objects and their arrangements on slides, they will be played by an audio artist John Beauchamp. With a set of ultrasensitive dynamic microphones he recorded sounds of the collection in Okonski’s cabinet of curiosities with a commentary of the owner. Soundscape of a particular artistic space which brings an array of discursive topics will intertwine with a narration on the spot in Lyon stretched between an academic paper and curatorial commentary.