Time Pieces

These works focus on time and attention.  They respond to my interest – and struggles – in developing a more present, clear and compassionate relationship with the world.

Works in wood and paint are the result of highly repetitive and time-intensive studio processes. These pieces accumulate like crystals according to simple directives and through long-form attention holding.  Transposing my attention into form has felt like a toehold in the deeper challenges of paying attention.

Another group of works invites you into an attention experiment.  “Plenty of Free Time” is a set of three “music boxes” that play their hits at a fraction of the intended tempos.  Extra time between notes turns out to be a lethal intervention.  Something about the way attention works makes it impossible to bridge that time and identify the familiar tunes.  Familiar melodies are equal parts expectation and listening.  I am interested in what can be heard when listening is unsupervised by expectation.

“Homage to Civ” is activated by riding a bike to pump water into an elevated reservoir.  The water drips down slowly, engaging a collection of pitched percussion elements.  The composition is unstructured in a conventional musical sense, nevertheless, real and evolving patterns are discoverable for an attentive listener.

If you know my work with the sound performance group Invisible you may find this show surprising.  Invisible has always offered a heavy backbeat of motion and spectacle.  It has aimed to capture attention and say things.  I am feeling the second half of my life now and, right on schedule, I’m finding I have more to ask.  I offer Time Pieces in that spirit.  Studios, galleries, time, attention, you, and I, can be sanctuaries for the questions.

Mark will give an Artist’s Talk March 17 at 5:00pm 
Zoom link: https://uncg.zoom.us/j/96549360127

Bio: Mark Dixon makes objects, performances, videos and sounds.  He cofounded the intermedia ensemble called Invisible in 2007, performing in contexts ranging from basements, to the Telfair Museum to UNCG’s New Music Festival and Moogfest.  Mark has an MFA in Studio Art from Carnegie Mellon University and is currently pursuing a WTF from his art and design students at Guilford College.