Response to Petherbridge

'Performativity and Traces of Action'

Deanna Petherbridge

In this reading, Petherbridge discusses the use of line in drawings. She goes with the argument that the quality of the line directly reflects the quality of the artist's response. Gestural mark-making is a trace of an action, an action that could be deliberate or accidental. The intensity of the graphic mark is based on the concentration of movement from the mark-maker. These marks can set the mood for the work and draw the viewer's eye to certain parts of the piece. 

Petherbridge goes on to analyse works by Goya. He is an artist that uses line very dominantly in his work. Goya uses contrasting lines to create certain effects. Through his process he has responded to accidental marks that were created. I think this is an important point. You can go into a drawing with a plan, but sometimes the work has a different idea of the outcome. It can be beneficial to incorporate these accidental marks into the work. These marks can represent the movement of the artist, a literal trace of the artist's actions. 

Petherbridge also discusses the incorporation of the body into the work. She discusses Yves Klein, who I reference in another blog post, and his anthropometries. I don't really connect with direct body prints in art. I prefer to see the marks made by the artist as he creates, the incidental marks that come with the performance of drawing. Not the direct print. 

Drawing is a record of the movement of the artist. Each mark is a trace of the action that created it. Different materials and different touches can add different effects to the work.