Synesthesia
7/14/2010 at 3:07 PM
I'm a synesthete and when I hear sounds I see colors, patterns and shapes. Numbers and letters are colors and some have personalities. I experience time as something physical that is relative to my body in space and is defined by colors, shapes and patterns. I have a variety of other forms of synesthesia too and have had these my whole life so I know nothing different. I can't imagine living without these experiences and use them throughout the making of art. I'm fascinated by the Universe and Physics so for the past fifteen years I've been building sculptures using round wooden toothpicks that are based on the orbits of the planets and the constellations. I reference various sounds depending on their colors and patterns to build up from the base pattern and find this to be a very addictive activity.
Currently, I'm working on a sculpture that's based on the constellation of Draco and I've been using a collection of deep voices of various actors and singers to help build up the exterior of the sculpture. Its all I think about and I love every moment of it. I work an average of 6 to 10 hours a day on my sculptures and at the moment I can't wait to finish Draco so that I can get on with my next sculpture.
I call my sculptures 'Pods' as they're like something that comes from the sea as well as from the Universe around us. I think of debris or drift wood collections that wash up on shore or travel in gravitational pools in space when I think of my sculptures. Each Pod has special significance to me and I am sort of in love with each one that I've made. I'm still reading about String Theory and Cosmic Fractals which I'm finding is directly influencing my sculptures and some of my 'Pods' were made just so I could try to grapple with an understanding of what I was reading at that time. Its fascinating and I love every minute of it.
For Draco, I've been learning a lot about some very interesting actors and singers who have deep voices and I have stumbled into TV shows or music that I previously knew nothing about so the referencing experience during this 'Pod' has been very interesting. I don't watch much TV as I find a lot of whats on really boring. I watch DVDs when I sculpt or I listen to CD's of sounds I need to see and sometimes I wonder if I'm using the colors and patterns too much like a cheat sheet for sculpting. Its like paint by number or something as I just have to see a sound to know what to do with the toothpicks. When I look back at a previous sculpture I find it comforting to be able to remember what I was seeing or listening to when I made it.
Maybe I rely too heavily on sound patterns but I don't know any other way to make these sculptures without seeing sounds. I think I might be completely addicted. I do also love toothpicks far too much.
Jon Dean
Rob
