west wall detail

On her own time, without any haste, Annette Lawrence unravelled dates in a line all around the gallery wall. Each day, month, and year is separated by an oblique stroke, the cycle repeated and habitually recorded since 1980 and so it continues. Quiet – the drawing just sits there – insistent without exhibiting any kind of need to announce itself, recalling On Kawara’s date paintings or Sol Lewitt’s pencil drawings. The taboo on menstruation is not so much sublimated as entirely bypassed – Mary Kelly without psychoanalysis, politics, or the baby. Along the line some numbers have been repeated – extending fourteen below and fourteen above. The vertical additions strengthen the horizontal plane at irregular intervals,– recalling ladders, ‘H’ and vast spaces of desert and plain.

north wall detail

Wind has been a big part of this trip [from Texas to Australia]. Caulfield is really windy all the time and I’m between buildings; and on 9/11 this week I shot the shadow of the wind on my closet doors, … I just noticed when I was downloading it that was the date.

In the drawing each day is an event on the horizon, that’s how I’m looking at these extensions, it’s the day of the year that we are in, as an extension of the drawing, … that would be all, it’s a very quiet piece. There are four times where September 15th occurs, September 16th does not occur at all, September 17 occurs 3 times, and September 18 occurs twice, the 19th I don’t know I’ll find out tomorrow. If I was going to be here until the 26th it would be each day, the same thing … expanding that day below and above the line

Here at the eAF the actual text is the same but the form is completely different. I’ve always drawn the text in spirals; I’ve never drawn it as a horizontal line before. I drew this on paper in Melbourne just to test it out and that’s why I thought it was going to be 22 metres, but on paper its much smaller. It’s actually 45 metres long.

Annette Lawrence, in a video interview, 18/9/09, recorded by Jess Wallace, artist-in-residence. A series of videos are in production and will be posted online over the coming weeks. See eAF documents for more info.

(Directions for the body 14/9/09) Jacobus Capone

* Wake at first light, take polaroid photograph of one's first glimpse of the sun (do not wait to see it develop) instead tape it to the left side of chest, exposure side to skin

* Promise self to keep interaction with others to a minimum * Then set off barefoot to find a space with grass which exhibits a sense of blandness. (Pay attention to how the ground feels.)

* Once suitable site is found begin picking individual strands of grass

* Farewell space chosen & make way back to eAF

* Once there individually tape each strand of grass to wall / and or floor

* Outline each strand

* When space closes, & once sun has set, remove photograph from chest. Cover exposure with Gold Leaf

* Rest

* Repeat process the next day