Introduction and study objective
John Baldessari is our hero, it goes without saying. As part of our research, we decided to re-enact one of his greatest sayings:
I will not make any more boring art
Methodology
We decided to sing it just as Baldessari sang Sol LeWitt’s paragraphs on conceptual art. This methodology is not dissimilar from sitting in front of a masterpiece in a museum with your sketchbook (and sketching of course).
We tried different genres – pop, rock, “Let it go” from Frozen, opera, melodic, electronic etc. We didn’t find that the music genre affected the piece. It was easier to sing without background music because karaoke style was a bit distracting. Dolly didn’t know “God save the Queen” so we couldn’t sing that and opted for Happy Birthday to you.
Results
The old-school sketching-type research methodology is still a valid strategy. It allowed us to really get into the work.
We demonstrated that although we come from different settings, through our art we can overcome cultural differences. Happy birthday is a globally recognised song.
The key to not making boring art is to have fun yourself making it and this is our philosophy.