Materiality & Process: The Physical Act and Properties of Materials as Central Meaning in Contemporary Art-Making

Abstract: This paper advocates a re-thinking of the artistic meaning, where in the work of some contemporary artists meaning is not merely a representation, but essentially a physical act of manufacture and the natural qualities of the materials used. Going beyond a semiotic or strictly conceptual approach, this paper used the method of comparative analysis to show that materiality and process are in turn the main bearers of content. It is examined with reference to the specific practices of four influential artists: William Kentridge, who uses erasable charcoal to create a palimpsest that literally embodies the process of memory and the process of historical change; Toyin Ojih Odutola, whose labour-intensive, mark-intensive practice physically enacts the convoluted systems of globalized information and power; Roni Horn, whose flowing behaviour of poured pigment or the meditative accretion of graphite marks is a direct enquiry into states of matter and directed perception; and Julie Mehretu, whose accumulative of ink and paint materialize the chaotic, overlapping systems of globalized information and power. With this narrowed analysis, the article argues that the act of creating something physical and the distinct features of the selected material is not merely a means to an end but, rather, the dwelling place of the conceptual and metaphorical strength of the work.