Secrets

- THERE IS NO PERFECT PAINTING, AND THERE IS NO PERFECT SOLUTION.

ANY IMAGE THAT I MAKE COULD BE THOUSANDS OF IMAGES.

- I HAVE A REAL APPRECIATION FOR HOW COMPLEX IT IS TO MAKE SOMETHING COMPELLING AND THAT CHANGES WITH EVERY VIEW.

- THE REVOLUTION THAT IS HAPPENING IN PERCEPTION HAS TO DO WITH HUMANS DESIGNING MACHINES AND SOFTWARE TO SEE FOR US.

- OKAY, LET'S DO IT AGAIN.

CAN WE TRY ONE MORE THING BEFORE ANNE COMES OUT TO SEE IF IT WORKS?

WE COULD JUST LEAVE IT LIKE THAT.

DON'T EVEN TURN IT.

CAN YOU DO IT AGAIN, EVAN, BUT THEN DO SOMETHING MORE DYNAMIC SO WE GET A SENSE OF, LIKE, A CHANGED GESTURE?

LIKE LIFT YOUR ARMS UP AND PUT ONE FOOT FORWARD.

THREE, TWO, ONE.

[ laughter ] OKAY, OKAY, I THINK WE'RE READY.

CAN YOU PUT THEM ON?

- YEAH.

- YOU LOOK VERY BEAUTIFUL.

I'VE NEVER SEEN SUCH A BEAUTIFUL LADY.

I WAS WORKING WITH THE IDEA OF ANNE PLAYING THE PART OF EURYDICE INSPIRED BY COCTEAU'S ORPHEUS.

THAT'S IT.

- THAT'S IT?

- WE'RE READY.

[ laughter ] - WHOA, THAT'S A LOT OF DRESS.

- IT IS A LOT OF DRESS.

- TILT IT THIS WAY SO YOU CAN SEE IT.

SO YOU STAND HERE.

AND JUST MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE STARING AT THE CAMERA INTO THE MIRROR.

- OKAY.

ELLIOTT KNEW THAT I HAD MODELED A NUMBER OF YEARS AGO.

IT WAS SOMETHING THAT HE ASKED ME TO DO, AND I THOUGHT "WELL, WHY NOT?

IT'LL BE FUN."

- OKAY, GO.

READY?

ANNE, WILL YOU STEP SIX INCHES FORWARD TOWARDS THE MIRROR?

RIGHT AFTER THAT LIGHT GOES OFF, YOU TURN TO LOOK AT TEDDY.

THREE, TWO, ONE.

PERFECT.

I WANTED IT TO BE VERY MANNERED, VERY ARTIFICIAL, VERY POSED AND THEATRICAL.

THREE, TWO, ONE.

I WANTED THE IMAGE TO BE ABOUT HER RELATIONSHIP TO THE MIRROR AND THE MIRROR AS A PICTURE WITHIN A PICTURE.

THREE, TWO, ONE.

- I'M NOT AFRAID OF BRINGING THE CHARACTER TO THE IMAGE.

I ENJOY THAT, AND I THINK THAT ELLIOTT FEELS COMFORTABLE WITH THAT AND MAYBE INSPIRED BY THAT.

- GREAT, ANNE.

- I ALSO ENJOY THE FACT THAT I'M HELPING CREATE A WORK OF ART.

TO ME, IT'S WONDERFUL.

- PERFECT.

WE MADE IT.

LET'S DO SEVERAL OF THOSE.

AND KEEP CHANGING THE WAY THAT YOU DO IT.

THAT'S PERFECT.

- I REMEMBER SEEING MYSELF IN THE MUSEUM IN SAN FRANCISCO.

THAT'S QUITE A FEELING.

YOU'RE LOOKING AT A PAINTING AND THINK, "OH, MY GOODNESS, THAT'S ME."

[ laughs ] TURNING OR NOT TURNING?

- NOT TURNING, LET'S TRY THAT.

- I BELIEVE IN HIM AS AN ARTIST.

- THREE, TWO, ONE.

- I FEEL THAT I'VE BEEN A PART OF HIS GROWTH TOO, WHICH IS AMAZING.

- THE PHOTO SHOOT IS SO ELABORATE BUT NOT BECAUSE I WANT A CERTAIN EFFECT BUT BECAUSE ACTUALLY I WANT TO NOT CONTROL THE EFFECTS, SO THAT ADDS AN AIR OF UNEXPECTED RESULTS.

- THAT'S AMAZING.

- THREE, TWO, ONE.

GOOD, MADE IT.

- OH, WHAT JUST HAPPENED?

- WHAT HAPPENED?

- THE POWER'S OUT.

- WHERE ARE THE ICE MACHINES PLUGGED UP, Y'ALL?

UH-HUH.

- I THINK IT'S THAT.

- I AM LAYING DOWN ARBITRARY COLOR AND DRAWINGS AND COMPOSITIONS, SOME OF WHICH ARE TAKEN FROM PHOTOGRAPHS OR EVEN STILL LIFES.

THAT'S NO GOOD.

I CONSIDER THEM THE UNDERPAINTINGS OF ALL THE THINGS THAT I'M MAKING FOR THE SHOW.

THEY'RE PRETTY DEVELOPED, BECAUSE I WANT TO START THE PAINTING WITH A PICTURE ALREADY.

SLIDE IT OVER THERE.

THE FIRST KNOWN COLLAGE THAT I'VE READ ABOUT WAS MADE OVER A MILLENNIUM AGO.

COLLAGE HAS BEEN USED IN SO MANY DIFFERENT WAYS FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS-- CUTOUTS, SILHOUETTES, FORMS OF SCRAPBOOKING.

WITHIN THE LAST 100 YEARS, IT'S BECOME ONE OF THE MOST RELEVANT FORMS OF ART MAKING.

IT IS SO IMPORTANT BECAUSE OF THE QUANTITY OF IMAGES THAT ARE IN OUR LIVES.

INTRINSICALLY, IT IS OUR WORLD.

IT REFLECTS OUR REALITY.

I'M JUST A NATURAL HOARDER OR COLLECTOR.

ACQUIRING OBJECTS IS LEARNING ABOUT OBJECTS.

- ELLIOTT AND I FREQUENT SWAP MEETS AND THRIFT STORES.

I WORK CLOSELY WITH HIM ON THESE LARGE COLLAGES, PREPARING MATERIALS.

- EVERYTHING YOU SEE HERE, IT'S WHAT WE USE FOR THE SCULPTURE, FROM, LIKE, YOU KNOW, WOOD TO METAL, PLASTIC.

- BITS OF PAPER THAT HAVE BEEN CUT APART AND WILL BE PINNED INTO THE SURFACE OF THESE COLLAGES.

WE CAN GET THIS LARGE COLLECTION OF MATERIALS LIKE THIS THAT WE'LL FILE AWAY UNTIL WE NEED IT.

- ANYONE WHO'S EVER PUT A STAMP ON AN ENVELOPE OR A NOTE ON THE REFRIGERATOR KNOWS WHAT IT'S LIKE TO MAKE A COLLAGE.

THERE'S NO ESOTERIC TECHNIQUE.

I ENJOY THE TRANSFORMATIVE ASPECT OF COLLAGE.

YOU CAN TAKE SOMETHING CAST OFF AND GIVE IT A NEW LIFE.

I FIRST WENT TO ROME IN 1995 TO STUDY.

MY SCHOOL HAD THIS PROGRAM TO GO TO ITALY, AND I WOULD HAVE GONE ANYWHERE.

I WAS SO READY TO SEE THE WORLD AT THAT POINT.

NOT ONLY DID I FEEL THAT VERY IMMEDIATE, INTIMATE CONNECTION WITH HISTORICAL WORKS OF ART; I ALSO FOUND THAT SENSE OF TIME THAT I'D NEVER ENCOUNTERED BEFORE.

I LIVED IN THIS BASEMENT APARTMENT, BUT IT HAPPENED TO HAVE A COURTYARD WITH COLUMNS THAT WERE OVER 2,000 YEARS OLD.

BECAUSE OF THAT EXPERIENCE, I'M ALWAYS TRYING TO LAYER IN A SENSE THAT THE PICTURE WAS BUILT OVER AN EXTENDED PERIOD.

I SELECTED SEVERAL IMAGES WHEN I STARTED WORKING TODAY.

I THOUGHT THAT THESE SHAPES WERE, LIKE, AN EFFECTIVE WAY TO THROW A REALLY SIMPLE PATTERNING INTO THE BACKGROUND.

I USED IT IN A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT PALETTE.

IT'S A VERY SIMPLE SHAPE MADE WITH BRUSHSTROKES THAT REFERENCES A LANDSCAPE.

I USE THESE ENVELOPES AS IF THEY'RE TUBES OF PAINT, LIKE PAINT CHIPS.

THERE IS NO PERFECT PAINTING, AND THERE IS NO PERFECT SOLUTION.

AT ANY GIVEN MOMENT, THERE'S TEN PIECES OF PAPER THAT I COULD PICK UP NEXT, AND THEY WOULD FIND THEIR PLACE, AND THEY WOULD LEAD ME ON A DIFFERENT PATH TO A DIFFERENT SORT OF PICTURE.

I JUST HAVE TO TRUST THAT PROCESS.

IN RELINQUISHING SOME CONTROL, IT ALLOWS ME SOME DISTANCE.

I START TO FEEL LIKE THE ARTWORK IS RESPONDING TO ME, GIVING ME SOMETHING BACK, OR BECOMING SOMETHING THAT I NEVER EXPECTED.

I ENJOY THAT MOMENT OF NOT RECOGNIZING MY OWN HAND.

- THE MOST EXCITING ASPECT OF THIS WAS TO SEE THE CHOICES ELLIOTT MAKES IN A PIECE, HOW HE'LL WORK ON IT FOR A WHILE BUT FEEL COMFORTABLE PUTTING IT ASIDE AND COMING BACK TO IT.

THINGS ARE A BIT MALLEABLE.

THEY CAN CHANGE.

I THINK IT'S PRETTY BRAVE TO BE ABLE TO CHANGE SOMETHING UP MIDWAY AND FEEL VERY COMFORTABLE AND FLUID.

ELLIOTT'S A GREAT TEACHER.

I THINK HE DOES A REALLY GOOD JOB OF FINDING PEOPLE'S STRENGTHS.

IT'S ALMOST LIKE WORKING WITH A CHOREOGRAPHER.

I GET NOTES FROM ELLIOTT.

- CONNECT THESE TWO FORMS.

- OKAY.

- BASICALLY, BUILD THIS... - A LOT OF IT IS TRYING TO ENHANCE OR BRING OUT A LOT OF WHAT'S HAPPENING ON THE SURFACE.

WE COLLAGE AN IMAGE DOWN ONTO THE CARVED PIECE AND THEN GLUE IT DOWN, BUT A LOT OF COLOR AND DETAIL GETS LOST IN THAT PROCESS, SO WE USE A PHOTOGRAPH AS A REFERENCE.

I WAS DAZZLED BY THE AMOUNT OF LABOR THAT WAS PUT INTO A PIECE.

- THAT CIRCLING'S REALLY GOOD.

I THINK DO IT AGAIN.

MY FAMILY'S LIVED IN NORTH CAROLINA AND VIRGINIA FOR AS LONG AS WE KNOW.

I WAS THE FIRST GRANDCHILD AND THE FIRST GREAT-GRANDCHILD, ONE YOUNG PERSON SPENDING A LOT OF TIME WITH ABOUT 20 PEOPLE WHO WERE MUCH OLDER THAN I WAS.

I'M SURE THAT THAT AFFECTED ME FROM A YOUNG AGE.

THE PIECES OF PAPER THAT ARE JUST HANGING ON THE SURFACE RIGHT NOW ARE ALMOST LIKE SKETCHES, AND THEY CHANGE CONSTANTLY, BUT I'M BLOCKING OUT POTENTIAL COMPOSITIONS, SEEING WHAT IT WOULD LOOK LIKE IF THE COLOR OF A CERTAIN SECTION WENT IN A CERTAIN DIRECTION.

- I AM GLUING IT, AND BY USING THIS LITTLE THING, I'M JUST, LIKE, APPLYING PRESSURE, MAKING SURE THAT IT'S, YOU KNOW, FLAT AND REALLY WELL GLUED ON TO THE SURFACE.

- THE COMPOSITIONAL STRUCTURE FOR THIS PICTURE IS DIRECTLY BASED ON JAPANESE PRINTS FROM THE LATE 1800s-- THE SCALE OF THE FIGURE WITHIN THE PICTURE, THE REPETITION OF PANELS.

IN JAPANESE TRIPTYCHS, THE FIGURES ARE DISTINCT, BUT BECAUSE THE COMPOSITION IS DIVIDED IN THAT WAY, THERE IS A FEELING OF A SEQUENCE OF EVENTS UNFOLDING FRAME TO FRAME.

AND ANOTHER INFLUENCE OF JAPANESE PRINTS IS IN THE INTRICACY OF CONFLICTING PATTERN AND THE VIBRANCY OF THE COLOR.

I FIRST BECAME INTERESTED IN JAPANESE PRINTS WHEN I DISCOVERED THE WORK OF KUNISADA, SORT OF MID-1800s.

WHEN WOODBLOCK PRINTING STARTED, THERE WERE FEWER COLORS, FAINTER AND MORE SIMPLE.

AS THE FORM PROGRESSED, THE COMPLEXITY OF THE IMAGES INCREASED.

VERY INTRICATE PATTERNS.

OFTEN CONFLICTING, BRILLIANT COLORS.

THEY'RE SO ENERGETIC, THEY'RE ALMOST NOISY.

SEEING A WORK IN ITS RIPEST POINT IN DEVELOPMENT.

I THINK THAT IT WOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE FOR SOME OF THOSE KUNISADA TRIPTYCHS TO GET ANY MORE INFORMATION IN THEM.

I KEEP EVERY PHOTOGRAPH AND EVERY MATERIAL I'VE EVER MADE.

I KEEP ALL OF THE PIECES THAT I REMOVE FROM WORKS OF ART.

WHEN A WORK'S COMPLETE, I SWEEP THE FLOOR UNDERNEATH AND PUT ALL THE CONTENTS IN A BOX AND PUT AWAY IN STORAGE.

ALL OF THAT MATERIAL IS READY TO BECOME THE BEGINNING OF NEW WORKS IN THE FUTURE.

OOH, THAT'S GOOD.

- OKAY.

- I'LL USE BOTH.

I GREW UP IN A CULTURE OF SAVING.

I'VE COME FROM A FAMILY WHERE EVERY OBJECT HAS A STORY AND THE OBJECT BECOMES MEANINGFUL.

PROBABLY EVERY ATTIC AND EVERY BASEMENT IN MY FAMILY IS FULL OF ALL THAT JUNK.

MY MOTHER MADE COSTUMES FOR ALL OF HER KIDS, BUT SHE ALSO DID IT FOR A JOB, FOR A LOCAL COSTUME RENTAL PLACE, COSTUMES FOR HALLOWEEN OR FOR THE THEATER.

I WAS THINKING ABOUT ALL OF THE THINGS MY MOTHER AND I USED TO MAKE TOGETHER, ALL SORTS OF CRAFTS OR CERAMICS OR DRIED FLOWER ARRANGEMENTS AND DEFINITELY DRAWINGS.

SHE WAS TEACHING ME THE JOY OF MAKING THINGS.

MAYBE IT KIND OF STARTS RIGHT UNDER THAT.

- OKAY.

- BUT THEN REMOVE THIS.

SEE HER ARM?

AND THEN THAT AND THAT AND THIS AND THIS AND MAYBE SOME OF THAT, THIS, THIS.

IT MIGHT GO DOWN THAT FAR.

YEAH, IT WILL.

- OKAY.

- I'VE ALWAYS LOOKED AT RAUSCHENBERG AND TWOMBLY'S WORK.

I HAVE AN INTUITIVE RELATIONSHIP TO THOSE ARTISTS.

THE FORMAL CONNECTION OF MY WORK TO RAUSCHENBERG IS APPARENT.

I THINK OF THE MATERIALS THAT I USE AS BEING ON A SPECTRUM FROM THE IDENTIFIABLE FOUND OBJECT TO THE FICTIVE ILLUSION.

THE FICTION OF A PICTURE IS ITS TRANSFORMATION, BUT TO MAKE THAT TRANSFORMATION COMPELLING, IT STILL NEEDS TO BE TETHERED TO REALITY, WHICH IS THE FOUND OBJECT.

- WHICH PIECE?

- THE RED ONE THERE.

- AFTER THE COLLAGE PROCESS, ELLIOTT WILL CHOOSE AN IMAGE TO BE CARVED INTO THE COLLAGE.

IN THIS CASE, IT WAS A BROKEN WINDOW.

THE PIECE WILL GET CARVED, THINGS SORT OF CHANGE AND ALTER, AND THEN ELLIOTT WILL CHOOSE AN IMAGE TO BE EMBROIDERED ONTO THE CARVED SURFACE.

THE COLLAGE IS PLACED ON FOAM, AND THEN THAT ALLOWS US TO CARVE INTO THE SURFACE.

IT LOOKS VERY MUCH LIKE A CANVAS.

- I CALL IT EMBROIDERY.

IT'S JUST PINNING ONE STRING WITH ONE PIN TO A PAINTING, ALMOST LIKE THE SURFACE OF A TAPESTRY.

YOU FOLLOW THAT TRAIN OF THOUGHT UNTIL THE ENTIRE SURFACE IS COVERED.

A LOT OF THE EMBROIDERIES ARE ACTUALLY MY OWN PAINTINGS TRANSLATED INTO A NEW MATERIAL.

- I'D READ A BOOK ABOUT BERNINI.

HE WAS A SCULPTOR.

HE WAS AN ARCHITECT.

HE ALSO HAD A LARGE STUDIO, AND HE WORKED WITH OTHER ARTISANS.

IT WAS INTERESTING TO COME IN HERE SOON AFTERWARDS AND WORK WITH ELLIOTT AND SEE THAT THERE'S SORT OF A CONTINUATION OF THAT TRADITION.

- I'M TRYING TO KEEP THE EMBROIDERY IN THE MIDDLE FOR MOST OF THESE PIECES, 'CAUSE IT'S SUCH A CONCENTRATED SENSE OF ACTIVITY, ALMOST A METAPHOR FOR A SENSE OF FOCUS.

AS YOU MOVE TOWARDS THE PERIMETER OF THE PICTURE, THINGS ARE MOVING INTO YOUR PERIPHERAL VISION.

I AM REALLY THINKING OF THEM NOT ONLY AS PICTURES WITHIN PICTURES BUT ALMOST LIKE SETTING A STAGE.

YOU CAN PAN OUT FURTHER AWAY AND HAVE A SENSE OF THE WINGS OF THE THEATRE OR THE TABLE THAT THE PIECE WAS MADE ON.

INITIALLY, I WAS JUST WORKING IN PAINTING.

THAT LED ME TO WORK IN COLLAGE.

THE IDEAS THAT I HAD ABOUT COLLAGE LED ME TO INCORPORATE STRAIGHT PINS, WHICH MEANT THAT I STEPPED INTO SCULPTURE.

AS THOSE IDEAS GREW, I FOLLOWED MY TRAIN OF THOUGHT AND DISREGARDED MAKING A DISTINCTION ABOUT WHAT'S A PAINTING OR A SCULPTURE.

EVERYTHING THAT I MAKE, I REALLY TRY TO TAKE THE ATTITUDE THAT THEY COULD BE FINISHED AT ANY MOMENT.

YOU HAVE TO THINK THAT WAY, BECAUSE AT SOME POINT, YOU HAVE TO STOP.

I PUT THE WORK IN THE GALLERY TO SHOW EVIDENCE OF THE ENTIRETY OF THE LIFE OF ITS MAKING.

NO MYSTERY IS LOST.

IT'S ALL HERE.

EVERY TECHNIQUE IS SELF-EVIDENT.

THERE'S NO SECRETS.

- CLAY IS EXTREMELY ELEMENTAL.

THERE'S NOTHING ABOUT IT THAT ATTRACTIVE OR INTERESTING.

IT'S JUST VERY, VERY BASIC.

THE LACK OF BEAUTY IN ITS RAW STATE IS IMPORTANT TO ME, BECAUSE IT GIVES ME GREAT FREEDOM, BECAUSE IF IT HAS NO CHARACTER, I CAN MAKE ANYTHING.

IT'S JUST THERE TO BE INVENTED.

THIS IS CALLED WEDGING.

IT'S A CLAY TERM FOR KNEADING.

IF YOU LEARN HOW TO DO IT, IT ROCKS BACK AND FORTH, AND IT FORMS THIS SPIRAL.

IT'S QUITE COOL-LOOKING.

I'M NOT A PERSON DEDICATED TO A MATERIAL, BUT I HAVE DEDICATED THE LAST SIX OR SEVEN YEARS TO WORKING IN CLAY.

CLAY IS ONE OF THESE MATERIALS THAT PERMITS ONE TO BE BOTH IN CONTROL AND OUT OF CONTROL.

IT'S LIKE A REAL CONVERSATION WITH THE WORK.

ONE OF THE GREAT THINGS ABOUT MAKING ART IS THAT YOU GET TO MAKE THINGS AND THEN LISTEN TO THOSE THINGS AND PAY ATTENTION TO THOSE THINGS.

I ALWAYS WANTED TO BE IN A FACTORY.

I WOULD TELL MY PARENTS THAT I WANTED TO BE EITHER A FARMER OR A FACTORY WORKER.

MY PARENTS COMPLETELY BLEW ME OFF WITH THAT ONE.

GROWING UP IN NEW YORK, YOU'RE SORT OF SEEING EVERYTHING FINISHED.

YOU DON'T SEE ANYTHING BEING MADE.

SO I WANTED TO KNOW: WHERE DID EVERYTHING COME FROM.

I THINK I BETTER COVER THIS.

IT'S GONNA GET A LITTLE DRY.

IF I ADD A PIECE OF CLAY TOO SOON, IT COLLAPSES; TOO LATE, IT WON'T ATTACH.

THERE'S A PERFECT MOMENT TO DO EVERYTHING, AND THEN WHEN THE MOMENT PASSES, IT'S GONE, AND THERE'S NOTHING TO DO ABOUT IT.

INTELLECTUALLY AND MAYBE SPIRITUALLY, IT'S AN INTERESTING THING TO WORK WITH.

I BUILD FOUR OR FIVE THINGS AT THE SAME TIME.

ALL OF THESE PIECES ARE AT THE BEGINNING, SO THESE PIECES WILL PROBABLY BE MUCH LARGER AND HAVE OTHER ELEMENTS THAT I DON'T KNOW ABOUT YET.

YESTERDAY, I FIGURED OUT THAT I NEEDED TO ADD SOME PARTS TO THIS, 'CAUSE THIS IS JUST GONNA BE WOVEN COILS, AND THOSE JUST HAVE TO BE ADDED A COUPLE AT A TIME.

I HAVE THESE PINS TO REMIND ME THAT THESE HAVEN'T BEEN JOINED, BECAUSE SOMETIMES I CAN JUST FORGET.

I WAS THINKING I HAVE TO HAVE A REAL APPETITE FOR UGLY.

[ laughs ] THERE ARE SO MANY POINTS WHERE THIS THING IS JUST HIDEOUS, AND YET I HAVE TO BELIEVE IN IT AND I HAVE TO GO ON WITH IT.

BUT IT MIGHT BE SOMETHING GOOD.

CUBE NEXT.

- GOOD.

- AND, UH...

IN ABOUT 15 MINUTES, WE'LL POUR OUT THE EXTRA SLIP THAT YOU SEE ON TOP, AND THE PLASTER WILL ALLOW THE THINGS TO BECOME A DRY CLAY THEN, WHEN WE TAKE IT OUT IN A COUPLE OF HOURS.

THIS IS A SLIP-CAST MOLD OF A FIRE BRICK, AND YOU CAN SEE THE MOLD PICKS UP EVERY SINGLE PART OF THE FIREBRICK, EVERY NUANCE.

WHEN THEY'RE WET LIKE THIS, I SOMETIMES TAKE THE OPPORTUNITY TO, YOU KNOW, DO SOMETHING WITH IT.

IF THIS THING DID NOT HAVE THE AIR PRESSING OUT, IT WOULD JUST COLLAPSE.

IT WOULDN'T HOLD ALL THESE FORMS.

OR IF IT WAS SOLID, YOU COULDN'T DO IT AT ALL.

THIS IS ALREADY ON A KILN SHELF, RIGHT?

- MM-HMM.

- THE REALLY OUT-OF-CONTROL PART IS, THIS THING THAT I SLAVE OVER OR I PLAY WITH WILL DRY FOR SEVERAL MONTHS, AND THEN IT WILL GO INTO A KILN OF OVER 2,000 DEGREES, AND THAT'S NUTS.

YOU KNOW, THAT'S-- [ laughs ] AND THEN ALL BETS ARE OFF.

I COME IN HERE AND PICK FROM THE TREE OF GLAZE.

I HAVE THIS REFERENCE BOOK THAT HAS PHOTOGRAPHS OF EVERY WORK AND THEN NOTES ON WHAT I DID.

IF ONE GLAZE IS UNDER ANOTHER GLAZE OR ON TOP OF IT, IT WILL BE CHEMICALLY COMPLETELY DIFFERENT AND FIRE COMPLETELY DIFFERENT.

WE FIRE IT WITH A COMPUTER TO A VERY EXACT DEGREE BASED ON WHAT THE GLAZES ARE.

THIS PIECE HAS GONE THROUGH FIVE OR SIX FIRINGS.

IT'LL BE A COUPLE OF DAYS OF FIRING AND THEN 2 1/2 DAYS OF GLUING.

THE FACT THAT YOU HAVE TO MAKE THINGS HOLLOW IS SOMETHING I'M ATTRACTED TO.

THIS MUSHY SUBSTANCE BECOMES STRUCTURAL.

YOU CAN PUSH UP AGAINST IT.

YOU CAN CREATE FORM IN A WAY THAT SOMETHING THAT'S SOLID COULD NEVER CREATE FORM.

OKAY, WE'RE GONNA LOAD THIS IN PRETTY SOON.

IF IT'S A COMPLETELY SOLID THING, THEN IT CAN'T BE FIRED.

ONE DAY, I JUST FELT HOW HAPPY I WAS HERE AND HOW I WAS ACTUALLY GETTING TO LIVE MY FANTASY, THAT BEING AN ARTIST WORKING IN A STUDIO, I HAD CREATED BOTH A FARM AND A FACTORY.

[ laughs ] AND WHEN I THOUGHT ABOUT IT, THE ESSENCE OF THAT DESIRE WAS REALLY WANTING TO KNOW HOW THINGS WERE MADE.

YEAH, WE'RE IN.

OKAY.

I'M ALWAYS SAYING YES TO NEW SITUATIONS.

IF I KEEP CREATING A CLOSED SYSTEM, THEN I'M NOT UNCOMFORTABLE ENOUGH TO PUSH SOME BOUNDARY.

[ mechanical whirring ] HERE WE GO.

I JUST WANT TO BE PUSHING BOUNDARIES AND SOLVING PROBLEMS.

I WAS INVITED TO MEISSEN.

IT WAS VERY, VERY OPEN-ENDED.

I WAS GIVEN A STUDIO, AND I DIDN'T HAVE TO DEFINE A PROJECT.

I DIDN'T HAVE TO SAY WHAT I WAS GOING TO DO, AND I DIDN'T HAVE TO DESIGN SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE PART OF THEIR PRODUCTION.

99% OF THE THINGS THERE ARE CAST, SO WORKING WITH MOLDS WAS SOMETHING THAT I HADN'T INCORPORATED INTO MY REGULAR CLAY PRACTICE.

THE INFRASTRUCTURE OF HOW THINGS WERE MADE THERE HAS EDGED ITS WAY INTO MY VOCABULARY IN TERMS OF THE ACTUAL SCULPTURES THAT I FOUND MYSELF MAKING FOR THE RISD SHOW.

WHAT I BROUGHT TO MEISSEN WAS EVERYTHING I KNEW.

I JUST WANTED TO LET IT RIP.

I LOVE EVERY KIND OF INDUSTRIAL ARCHITECTURE.

INDUSTRY IN GENERAL, TOOLS, WHAT SOME PERSON MIGHT THINK OF AS MECHANIZED AND FRIGHTENING, I THINK OF AS MECHANIZED AND FASCINATING.

IT'S ALSO A VERY PARTICULAR THING AT A PLACE LIKE THE MEISSEN FACTORY, WHICH BEGAN IN 1710.

THE ORIGINS OF THE WHOLE PORCELAIN WORLD ARE RIGHT THERE.

THAT WAS THE FIRST PLACE IN EUROPE WHERE THEY FIGURED OUT HOW TO MAKE PORCELAIN.

INSIDE THIS PLACE IS A FACTORY BUT DEDICATED TO THE HANDMADE, TO THIS VIGILANT CRAFTSMANSHIP THAT, IN MANY WAYS, I AM THE ANTITHESIS OF.

BORROWING FROM THEIR INSANE NEED FOR PERFECTION EMPOWERED MY DESIRE FOR IMPERFECTION.

I WALKED AROUND THE FACTORY ENDLESSLY, AND I REALIZED THAT THE THING I REALLY LOVED WERE THE MOLDS.

THE MOLD FORMS WERE WAY CLOSER TO MY AESTHETIC THAN THE THINGS THAT WERE COMING OUT OF THOSE MOLDS, THAT WERE THE MEISSEN TRADITIONAL OBJECTS.

I ENDED UP MAKING A PROPOSAL THAT I WOULD MAKE MOLDS OF THEIR MOLDS AND CAST IN PORCELAIN SLIP MY MOLDS, CREATING PORCELAIN VERSIONS OF THEIR INDUSTRIAL OBJECTS.

WHEN I CAST IN THEIR MOLDS, I LEFT ALL OF THE SEAMS AND ALL OF THE LITTLE SIGNS AND SYMBOLS THAT INDICATED HOW TO PUT THE PIECE TOGETHER AND WOULD NEVER BE SEEN OUTSIDE OF THE FACTORY.

I CAST IN THE SIGNATURES, SORT OF A CELEBRATION OF THE WORKER.

THE WORKERS, WHEN THEY SAW THEM, THEY WOULD JUST LAUGH.

I WAS TAKING BITS AND PIECES OF EVERYTHING THAT WAS TRUE TO MEISSEN HISTORICALLY AND EVERYTHING THAT WAS TRUE TO ME AS A CONTEMPORARY ARTIST WORKING IN AN 18TH-CENTURY FACTORY AND TRIED TO PUT IT TOGETHER.

- THIS IS MORE INTERESTING UP HERE TOO.

- YEAH, RIGHT IN HERE.

I THINK REALLY CLOSE IN THERE IS GREAT.

I REALLY LIKE THAT.

IT'S, LIKE, COMING FROM INSIDE.

OKAY, WELL, UNDOUBTEDLY, WE WILL FIRE IT AGAIN, BUT WE MIGHT START... START TO WORK WITH IT.

I'M GONNA TURN THIS AROUND.

WE NEEDED TO MAKE SCALE VERSIONS OF EACH SCULPTURE FOR THE GALLERY.

DOWN HERE, I CAN VERY ROUGHLY APPROXIMATE THE WAY I MIGHT SEE THINGS AS I ENTER THE GALLERY.

I DON'T WANT EVERYTHING AT THE SAME HEIGHT.

I DON'T WANT TOO MANY THINGS WITH METAL OVER THERE, TOO MANY THINGS WITH CONCRETE OVER HERE.

SO I'M BALANCING ALL OF THOSE CONCERNS VERY, VERY INTENTIONALLY.

THE COMPLETE PIECE IS NOT JUST THE CERAMIC.

THE COMPLETE PIECE IS SOMETHING THAT ALLOWS THE CERAMIC TO LIVE IN THE WORLD AT THE HEIGHT I WANT, IN THE SHAPE I WANT, AND IN THE MATERIAL COMBINATION THAT I WANT, AND IN THE COLOR I WANT.

WHAT IS REFERRED TO AS THE PEDESTAL, I SOMETIMES CALL THE ARCHITECTURE OF THE PIECE.

I HAVE A REAL APPRECIATION FOR HOW COMPLEX IT IS TO MAKE SOMETHING THAT IS COMPELLING AND THAT CHANGES WITH EVERY VIEW.

THAT IS AN OLD-FASHIONED SCULPTURAL CONCERN THAT I LOVE AND THAT I BELIEVE COMES BACK TO THAT THING OF PEOPLE WALKING AROUND THE PIECES IN THE GALLERY.

SCULPTURE CREATES MOVEMENT.

I DID, IN MY EARLY TEACHING, IMPROVISATIONAL DANCE WITH THE STUDENTS, BECAUSE I THINK IT'S THE SAME THING.

[ chuckles ] CLAY IS A GREAT THREE-DIMENSIONAL DRAWING MATERIAL.

IT LEAVES A RECORD IN THE SAME WAY THAT A DRAWING LEAVES A VERY DIRECT RECORD OF THE ARTIST'S HAND.

THE INSTALLATION IS THE WHOLE THING, AND THAT'S A VERY BIG IDEA.

I THINK, ACTUALLY, I'M AN INSTALLATION ARTIST WHO MAKES OBJECTS.

I WANT TO MAKE SOMETHING MORE THAN AN IDEA.

I DON'T WANT ANYBODY TO BE ABLE TO DESCRIBE THE PIECES TOO EASILY.

I WANT TO MAKE THINGS THAT ARE MORE OPEN-ENDED THAN THAT.

I WANT TO MAKE PHYSICAL COMEDY AND INTELLECTUAL HUMOR THAT HAS A KIND OF VISCERAL REACTION THAT ENDS UP BY CREATING SOME SORT OF COMPLEX FEELINGS SO THAT THE REACTION ISN'T, "I UNDERSTAND THIS."

THE REACTION IS "WHAT IS THIS, AND WHY?"

- THE TITLE OF THIS PIECE IS A PROTOTYPE FOR A NONFUNCTIONAL SATELLITE, AND THE IDEA HERE IS TO TAKE TECHNOLOGY, TAKE ENGINEERING, AND USE THEM FOR THE EXACT OPPOSITE OF WHAT THEY NORMALLY DO.

IT'S BASICALLY A GIANT BALLOON THAT COLLAPSES INTO A VERY SMALL CUBE.

THE WHOLE THING WEIGHS LESS THAN A POUND.

YOU COULD PUT THIS ON A ROCKET.

IT WOULD GO UP INTO A LOW-EARTH ORBIT, AND WHEN YOU SENT A SIGNAL TO IT, IT WOULD INFLATE ITSELF.

YOU'D BE ABLE TO SEE IT FROM THE GROUND.

IT WOULD LOOK LIKE A STAR SLOWLY MOVING ACROSS THE SKY.

IT WOULD LAST A FEW WEEKS, AND THEN IT WOULD ACCUMULATE A LOT OF ATMOSPHERE DRAG AND BURN UP.

IT'S A VERY TEMPORARY THING.

SOME OBJECTS ARE DESIGNED TO MAKE PATTERNS THAT SHIMMER, OTHER ONES THAT FLICKER.

OTHER DESIGNS GET BRIGHT AND THEN GET DARK AGAIN.

WHAT WE'RE DOING HERE TODAY IS INFLATION TESTS.

[ machine whirring ] TRYING TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THESE OBJECTS ARE PHYSICALLY AS WELL AS AESTHETICALLY.

- FOUND A HAIRLINE HERE.

- YEAH, THERE'S ONE THERE.

THERE'S ANOTHER ONE OVER HERE TOO.

I REALLY DO THINK OF THEM AS POST-MINIMALIST SCULPTURES INSPIRED IN LARGE PART BY SOME VERY EARLY SPACECRAFT THAT NASA BUILT.

ALL RIGHT, COOL.

IT WAS A VERY STRANGE TIME IN THE LATE 1950s, EARLY 1960s WHERE PEOPLE WERE PUTTING THINGS INTO SPACE, BUT THAT LANGUAGE OF SPACECRAFT HADN'T REALLY CONGEALED YET.

WHAT WAS SPUTNIK?

IT WAS A METAL BALL THAT WENT, "BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP, BEEP."

THERE WAS REALLY NO POINT TO IT OTHER THAN TO MAKE IT.

NASA DID A PROJECT CALLED PAGEOS, MAKING BIG SELF-INFLATING BALLOONS.

THESE WERE COMMUNICATION SATELLITES.

YOU WOULD BE ABLE TO MAKE A TRANSCONTINENTAL TELEPHONE CALL BY RELAYING A RADIO WAVE TO ONE OF THESE REFLECTIVE SATELLITES IN THE SKY, AND THEN THE WAVE WOULD BOUNCE BACK TO SOMEWHERE ELSE IN THE WORLD.

THERE WAS SOMETHING ELSE THAT THEY WANTED TO DO WITH THESE SPACECRAFTS, OF COURSE, WHICH WAS MAKE BETTER MAPS FOR NUCLEAR WEAPONS.

A LOT OF ARTISTS AT THAT TIME WERE LOOKING AT THEM AS AESTHETIC OBJECTS.

MAYBE THEY SAW A WORLD WHERE WE DIDN'T HAVE TO KILL OURSELVES WITH NUCLEAR WAR, WE DIDN'T HAVE TO USE TECHNOLOGY TO BUILD A SURVEILLANCE STATE.

MAYBE THERE WAS A DIFFERENT DIRECTION.

AND THAT MOMENT IS SOMETHING THAT I'M VERY MUCH TRYING TO UNDERSTAND.

WE'RE STANDING HERE ON THE SOUTHERN BORDER OF A GIANT MILITARY RANGE ABOUT THE SIZE OF SWITZERLAND CALLED THE NELLIS RANGE.

JUST TO THE WEST OF HERE IS THE NEVADA TEST SITE, WHERE NUCLEAR TESTING HAS BEEN DONE OVER MANY, MANY DECADES.

THIS IS THE CENTER FOR A LOT OF THE DRONES THAT ARE FLOWN BY THE AIR FORCE, AS WELL AS VARIOUS PARTS OF THE MILITARY AND INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY.

THE BASE IS RIGHT BY THE SIDE OF A HIGHWAY.

I FIRST FOUND THESE DRONES LITERALLY DRIVING BY, LOOKING UP IN THE SKY AND GOING "HEY, WHAT'S THAT?"

IT'S PERFECTLY LEGAL WHAT WE'RE DOING.

YOU CAN PHOTOGRAPH ANYTHING THAT YOU CAN SEE WITH YOUR EYES.

WE'RE STANDING ON PUBLIC LAND.

ON ONE HAND, THE UNITED STATES HAS MASSIVE SECRECY APPARATUSES, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, IT'S ALSO ONE OF THE MOST OPEN COUNTRIES IN THE WORLD.

I GREW UP IN THE AIR FORCE.

IT MADE ME VERY COMFORTABLE AROUND MILITARY CULTURE, THAT THE MILITARY IS A PART OF WHAT THE UNITED STATES IS.

I LIVED IN TEXAS; WASHINGTON, D.C.; SEVERAL DIFFERENT PLACES OVERSEAS.

YOU'RE ALWAYS BEING UPROOTED, BUT ON THE PLUS SIDE, YOU'RE ALWAYS SEEING NEW THINGS, HAVING A CHANCE TO SEE THINGS IN A DIFFERENT WAY.

I'VE BEEN WORKING AS AN ARTIST FOR MY WHOLE LIFE.

EVER SINCE I WAS A LITTLE KID AND THROUGH HIGH SCHOOL, I'VE ALWAYS WORKED ON CREATIVE PROJECTS.

WHEN I WENT TO ART SCHOOL, THE WAY THAT ART IS TAUGHT AT THE GRADUATE LEVEL IS VERY THEORETICAL AND COMES PRETTY LOOSELY FROM LITERARY THEORY.

WHAT IS THE RHETORIC OF AN IMAGE?

THAT NEVER COMPLETELY WORKED FOR ME.

I WANTED TO GO FURTHER.

ART IS MORE THAN A SERIES OF IMAGES THAT ARE DISEMBODIED.

ART IS OBJECTS THAT LIVE IN REAL PLACES, ECONOMIES, SPACES, ARCHITECTURE.

I WAS LOOKING FOR A LOT OF DIFFERENT WAYS TO TRY TO FIND A LANGUAGE THAT WOULD ALLOW ME TO THINK ABOUT WHAT I WAS DOING, AND I ENDED UP COMING TO GEOGRAPHY.

GEOGRAPHY IS ABOUT EVERYTHING.

IT ALLOWED ME TO TAKE IDEAS FROM VISUAL THEORY AND CULTURAL STUDIES AND INCORPORATE THEM INTO A LARGER LANDSCAPE THAT COULD DEAL WITH POLITICAL ECONOMY, THAT COULD DEAL WITH ARCHITECTURE, THAT COULD DEAL WITH SPACE.

IN FACT, THAT'S WHAT THE WHOLE THING IS ABOUT, WAS THE PRODUCTION OF SPACE.

A LOT OF WORKS THAT WE NOW LOOK AT AS BEING CLASSIC KIND OF ART LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY, PEOPLE LIKE TIMOTHY O'SULLIVAN OR MUYBRIDGE, WESTERN PHOTOGRAPHERS, YOU GO TO THE NATIONAL ARCHIVES AND LOOK UP THOSE ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPHS, THEY COME IN THESE GIANT REPORTS THAT SAY, YOU KNOW, "RECONNAISSANCE SURVEY OF THE AMERICAN WEST, DEPARTMENT OF WAR."

THESE WERE NOT REALLY MEANT TO BE LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHS IN THE WAY THAT CONTEMPORARY LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHERS WORK.

THESE PHOTOGRAPHERS WERE HIRED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF WAR TO GO OUT AND DOCUMENT THE WEST FOR REASONS OF SURVEYING AND CARTOGRAPHY AND MAPMAKING BUT ALSO FOR IDEOLOGICAL REASONS AS WELL, AS A KIND OF CLAIMING OF THE WEST.

THAT'S INTERESTING TO ME IN THAT TRADITION, THAT RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN AESTHETICS AND POWER AND TECHNOLOGY AND IDEOLOGY.

SETTLERS, PEOPLE FROM THE GOLD RUSH DESCRIBED THIS LANDSCAPE USING VOCABULARY THAT THEY WOULD USE TO DESCRIBE HELL.

THEY TALKED ABOUT SALT PILLARS, INFERNOS, THIS VERY TWISTED AND DANGEROUS AND TERRIFYING PLACE.

IN TERMS OF THAT TRADITION OF WESTERN LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY, IT'S SOMETHING THAT I THINK ABOUT BEING IN DIALOGUE WITH.

PERHAPS IT GOES BACK TO THAT QUESTION OF THE WEST, THIS PROMISE OF A CERTAIN KIND OF FREEDOM, A HORIZON OF POSSIBILITY BUT ONE THAT HAS NEVER BEEN WITHOUT AN EXTREME AMOUNT OF VIOLENCE.

THAT WAS TRUE OF THE 19TH CENTURY WITH THE COLONIZATION OF THE WEST AND THE INDIAN WARS, AND IT'S TRUE NOW, PERHAPS, WITH THE DRONE WARS.

PRETTY MUCH NO MATTER WHERE A DRONE IN THE WORLD IS FLYING, THERE'S A GOOD CHANCE THAT THAT PILOT IS BASED IN NEVADA.

THEY'RE FLYING COMBAT MISSIONS IN PAKISTAN, YEMEN, AFGHANISTAN, CONTROLLED FROM NEVADA, SO THOSE SPACES ARE FOLDED INTO ONE ANOTHER IN A VERY REAL WAY.

YOU SPEND SOME TIME OUT THERE, AND YOU REALIZE THAT THERE'S LITTLE THINGS FLYING AROUND THAT LOOK LIKE INSECTS.

THOSE ARE DIFFERENT DRONES THAT ARE FLOWN FROM NEVADA.

WHAT'S INTERESTING TO ME ABOUT PHOTOGRAPHING DRONES AT ALL IS CONTINUING THIS EXPLORATION OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SEEING AND TECHNOLOGY AND AESTHETICS AND POLITICS.

THESE ARE REMOTELY CONTROLLED CAMERAS THAT HAVE MISSILES ATTACHED TO THEM.

THEY'RE INVOLVED IN ASSASSINATIONS AND THAT SORT OF THING.

LOOKING AT THE DRONE IN THE SKY, FOR ME, IS PERHAPS A LITTLE BIT OF AN ECHO OF TURNER LOOKING AT THE TRAIN IN THE FAMOUS PAINTING RAIN, STEAM, AND SPEED.

IT'S A VERY BLURRY, VERY ABSTRACT IMAGE OF A TRAIN, BUT WHAT WAS HAPPENING AT THAT MOMENT IN TIME WAS THAT TRAINS WERE SOME OF THE FIRST EXAMPLES OF THINGS THAT HUMANS HAD MADE THAT MOVED FASTER THAN YOUR EYE COULD SEE.

AND THERE'S CRAZY STORIES, PEOPLE BEING HIT BY TRAINS THAT WERE TRAVELING AT 30 MILES AN HOUR BECAUSE THEY LITERALLY COULD NOT UNDERSTAND WHAT THAT SPEED MEANT.

I'M TRYING TO SEE SOME OF THE OBJECTS THAT ARE RADICALLY TRANSFORMING THE WAY THAT WE UNDERSTAND AND PERCEIVE THE WORLD.

IN MUYBRIDGE, YOU FIND THIS PULLING APART OF TIME, WHICH GETS PICKED UP BY SOMEONE LIKE EDGERTON, WHO HAS FAMOUS PHOTOGRAPHS OF A BULLET FLYING THROUGH AN APPLE, REALLY SPEEDING UP TIME.

EDGERTON THEN GETS A CONTRACT TO PHOTOGRAPH THE EARLY ATMOSPHERIC NUCLEAR TESTS, WHAT A NUCLEAR EXPLOSION LOOKS LIKE.

TO DO THAT KIND OF PHOTOGRAPHY, THE TRIGGERS FOR HIS SHUTTERS ARE BETTER THAN THE TRIGGERS IN THE NUCLEAR WEAPONS THEMSELVES, SO THE TRIGGER FOR THE CAMERA BECOMES INCORPORATED INTO THE NUCLEAR WEAPON.

A COMPANY STARTS CALLED EG&G, WHICH IS NOW A MAJOR DEFENSE COMPANY.

THERE'S A VERY INTERESTING AND VERY MESSY HISTORY OF SEEING, OF TECHNOLOGY, OF MILITARISM AND WEAPONS THAT ARE CONFLATED IN 19TH-CENTURY LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHY.

THIS QUESTION OF REPRESENTATION AND TECHNOLOGY AND POLITICS AND IDEOLOGY HAS ALWAYS BEEN A PART OF THE HISTORY OF ART-- LEONARDO DA VINCI, ROMAN MITHRAIC MYSTERIES.

IN TERMS OF THE LIMITS OF THE WAY THAT WE OFTEN TALK ABOUT ART, WE FAIL TO RECOGNIZE THE PRODUCTION OF IMAGES OR ART OBJECTS HAS EVERYTHING TO DO WITH WHAT IS GOING ON IN A SOCIETY.

WHAT I'M DOING HERE IS COLLECTING BADGES AND PATCHES FOR SECRET MILITARY PROJECTS.

THIS QUESTION OF HOW TO REPRESENT THAT WHICH MUST NOT BE REPRESENTED IS ONE OF THE OLDEST QUESTIONS IN ART.

MOST RELIGIOUS ART IN MANY, MANY DIFFERENT TRADITIONS HAS TO DO WITH EXACTLY THIS QUESTION.

THE IMAGE OF THE FISH, THE LAMB, THESE ARE IMAGES THAT WOULD BE UNDERSTOOD BY OTHER CHRISTIANS DURING THE ROMAN EMPIRE BUT WOULD NOT MEAN ANYTHING TO SOMEBODY WHO WAS AN OUTSIDER.

UNITED STATES AIR FORCE AEROSPACE MEDICINE, AFFTC, THAT MEANS AIR FORCE FLIGHT TEST CENTER, WORN BY THE DOCTORS WHO SERVICE PILOTS AT AREA 51, WHICH IS KIND OF THE FAMOUS BASE THAT DOESN'T EXIST IN NEVADA.

THE LITTLE SLOGAN THAT THEY HAVE IS "BETTER CARE NOWHERE," SO THERE'S ALL KINDS OF JOKES GOING ON.

THE FIGURE OF THE DRAGON USUALLY MEANS A SO-CALLED SIGNALS INTELLIGENCE SATELLITE, OR AN EAVESDROPPING SATELLITE.

IT JUST COLLECTS CELL PHONE CALLS, ANY KIND OF RADIO TRANSMISSION EMANATING FROM THE SURFACE OF THE EARTH.

IT'S A GIANT ANTENNA.

IT'S THE SIZE OF A FOOTBALL FIELD.

THEY LOOK LIKE UMBRELLAS.

THAT STRETCHED-OUT CIRCULAR ANTENNA IN THESE ICONS TRANSLATES INTO THE IMAGE OF THE DRAGON WITH ITS WINGS OUTSTRETCHED, AND IT LOOKS LIKE IT'S A STAR JOINING A COLLECTION OF OTHER STARS, SO IT'S SATELLITE THAT IS JOINING A COLLECTION OF OTHER SATELLITES THAT HAVE SOME KIND OF SECRET RECONNAISSANCE MISSION.

WHAT ARE ALL THE THINGS THAT ARE GOING ON AROUND US THAT INFLUENCE OUR LIVES, OUR POLITICAL CULTURE, YOU KNOW, OUR CULTURE AT LARGE AND YET WHICH ARE INVISIBLE?

WHAT ARE THE THINGS IN ORBIT THAT INFLUENCE WHAT GOES ON ON THE SURFACE OF THE EARTH BUT ARE ALSO, IN A VERY LITERAL SENSE, UNEARTHLY?

THERE'S A SMALL GROUP OF AMATEUR ASTRONOMERS AROUND THE WORLD THAT EVERY NIGHT GO OUT AND LOOK FOR THINGS THAT "AREN'T THERE" IN THE SKY.

AND OVER DOZENS OF YEARS, THEY'VE PUT TOGETHER A KIND OF ALTERNATIVE CATALOG TO THE NIGHT SKY.

BY TAKING OBSERVATIONS FROM THESE AMATEUR ASTRONOMERS, YOU CAN MODEL THE ORBITS OF SPACECRAFT AND PREDICT EXACTLY WHERE IT WILL BE IN THE NIGHT SKY.

SATELLITES HAVE TO FOLLOW KEPLER'S LAWS OF PLANETARY MOTION, AND SO THERE'S A REAL CONTRADICTION IN THE SENSE THAT THE MILITARY CAN MAKE ALL THE SECRET STUFF THAT THEY LIKE, BUT THEY CAN'T INVENT SECRET LAWS OF PHYSICS.

I WANT TO--LET'S FIGURE OUT WHAT TIME SUNSET IS GONNA BE.

SUNSET IS GONNA BE AT 7:50, SO I WANT TO LOOK AT SATELLITES THAT ARE GONNA BEGIN, LET'S SAY, BETWEEN 8:45 AND 11:45 TONIGHT.

AND HERE I GOT MY LIST.

THESE ARE ALL THE CLASSIFIED SPACECRAFT THAT WILL BE IN THE SKY THIS EVENING, MANY OF WHICH WON'T BE VISIBLE.

I'M JUST GOING TO TAKE A SCREEN SHOT OF THIS TRAJECTORY AND SAVE IT.

THIS BASICALLY IS GOING TO GIVE ME A MAP OF WHAT THIS SPACECRAFT IS GOING TO DO.

AND THEN I'M GONNA PUT IT IN A SHOT LIST, AND I'M GOING TO SAY, "OKAY, AT 9:10, "WE WANT TO BE LOOKING AT THIS PART OF THE SKY AND FOR THIS SATELLITE."

THIS IS ACTUALLY WHAT IS GONNA TAKE THE PICTURES.

THIS IS A VERY SIMPLE, STANDARD, BORING CAMERA WITH AN OFF-THE-SHELF LENS.

SOMETIMES I'LL SHOOT UNDER CLOUDY SKIES OR HAZY SKIES OR CLEAR SKIES.

I REALLY TRY TO INCORPORATE A WIDE SPECTRUM OF ATMOSPHERIC CONDITIONS INTO THE PHOTOGRAPHS THAT I TAKE.

THERE'S A VERY LONG TRADITION OF LOOKING AT THE NIGHT SKY.

THE NIGHT SKY IS A CULTURAL MIRROR.

GOING BACK TO THE BABYLONIANS OR GREEKS OR YOU NAME IT, PEOPLE HAVE LOOKED TO THE SKY FOR ANSWERS TO THE BIG QUESTIONS.

WHO ARE WE?

WHERE HAVE WE COME FROM?

WHERE ARE WE GOING?

AND THAT WAS TRUE OF BABYLONIAN ASTROLOGISTS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT THE FUTURE BASED ON THE MOVEMENT OF THE PLANETS, AND THAT'S TRUE OF CONTEMPORARY SCIENTISTS USING THINGS LIKE THE HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE TO TRY TO SEE THE BEGINNING OF TIME AND THE LIMITS OF THE UNIVERSE.

IT'S TAKING THAT TROPE AND TWISTING IT AROUND A LITTLE BIT AND LOOKING AT THE SKY.

BUT INSTEAD OF SEEING SOME KIND OF DIVINE FUTURE, WE SEE MILITARY THINGS.

WE SEE SURVEILLANCE MACHINES.

THE REVOLUTION THAT IS HAPPENING IN PERCEPTION RIGHT NOW HAS TO DO WITH MACHINES SEEING FOR OTHER MACHINES.

HUMANS ARE DESIGNING MACHINES AND SOFTWARE TO SEE FOR US, AND THAT'S NEW.

IT'S SOMETHING I'M JUST TRYING TO UNDERSTAND HOW TO SEE, I GUESS.

announcer: NEXT TIME ON ART IN THE 21ST CENTURY... - ART CAN HAVE CONNECTIONS OVER MANY CENTURIES.

- PART OF THE HOMEWORK THAT SOCIAL-ENGAGED ART HAS TO DO IS RETHINK THE WAY IN WHICH THE PROJECTS SURVIVE.

- COLLECTORS, THEY WANT TO COLLECT MY WORK.

THEY KEEP A PROBLEM.

announcer: TO LEARN MORE ABOUT ART IN THE 21ST CENTURY AND ITS EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES, PLEASE VISIT US ONLINE AT :ART IN THE 21ST CENTURY IS AVAILABLE ON DVD.

TO ORDER, VISIT :OR CALL