Abstract
In the evolving landscape of contemporary art, the value of failure and experimentation plays a central role in reshaping artistic research. This paper explores an artistic residency where the focus shifted from traditional practices of ink on canvas to performance art using the human body as a medium of expression. This residency emphasized uncertainty, experimentation, and emotional expression as the core of the process. Through collaboration between a calligrapher and a visual artist, the performance engaged themes of seduction, silence, and the transition between reality and abstraction. In alignment with experimental art practices, the process itself became the artwork, embracing moments of failure and disruption as key components of creative exploration. This research integrates theories from neuroscience, psychology, and artistic failure, drawing on the insights of thinkers like John Cage, Samuel Beckett, and Cornelius Cardew to further contextualize the residency’s impact.
Introduction: The Heart of the Experiment
John Cage once said, “I am trying to be unfamiliar with what I’m doing,” encapsulating the essence of experimental art practices where uncertainty is the driving force. In artistic research, experimentation is often at the heart of the process, and the outcome remains unknown. This lack of a predetermined result transforms both the journey and the final product into a continuous exploration, where failure is not only inevitable but desirable. In this residency, we embraced the unknown, shifting the artistic dialogue from ink on canvas to ink on the human body, creating a living, breathing artwork where emotions were the palette and failure became a method of discovery.
Many artistic research projects require clear outcomes, often restricting experimentation. Yet, experimental art seeks to remove these boundaries, allowing failure to become an integral part of both the process and the work itself. This paper explores how this residency’s focus on performance, movement, and emotional interaction met these ideals, revealing how experimentation—through silence, seduction, and the transition from refusal to acceptance—became the heart of the artistic expression.
Methodology: Embracing Uncertainty and Failure
The artistic residency functioned as an experimental laboratory where failure was not feared but embraced. Drawing on Cage’s philosophy of unfamiliarity and Beckett’s notion of “failing better,” the process allowed the artists to abandon the need for perfection and instead explore the limits of emotional expression, communication, and embodiment.
The performance was set in a dark room, with a single spotlight illuminating the artists—a calligrapher and a visual artist. The calligrapher’s body, inscribed with ink, represented a departure from traditional practices, while the visual artist used his camera to document the unfolding emotions and moments. Silence and movement were central to the performance, creating a tension that invited the audience to engage with the vulnerability of the process. This mirrored Tom Johnson’s *Failing* (1975), a piece that requires performers to confront inevitable failure, resonating with the uncertainty of the residency’s artistic outcome.
Experimental art theorists, such as Cornelius Cardew, posit that failure is intrinsic to artistic exploration because it reveals the gap between human goals and nature’s indifference to success or failure. In this residency, the focus on human emotions, embodied through movement and silence, underscored the natural disruptions in communication, problem-solving, and artistic interaction. Each failure—a misstep in movement, a hesitation in gesture—became an opportunity to delve deeper into emotional layers, ultimately enhancing the collaborative experience.
The Neuroscience of Artistic Failure and Emotional Expression
Experimental art is inherently tied to the exploration of emotion, failure, and cognitive engagement. Neuroscientific research highlights how emotional engagement in art can trigger neural pathways associated with empathy, problem-solving, and emotional regulation. According to Damasio’s (1999) theory of embodied emotion, our bodies are active participants in emotional processing, and failure in art allows for deeper emotional introspection. The calligraphy inscribed on the skin in this performance transcended words, representing not only artistic expression but emotional communication.
The transitions between silence and song, refusal and acceptance, echo research on how art can stimulate emotional engagement in both the artist and the audience. Mirror neuron studies by Rizzolatti and Craighero (2004) suggest that observing others’ actions and emotions can activate the same neural circuits in the observer, allowing the audience to “mirror” the emotional journey of the artists. As the performers navigated their own emotional responses to failure, the audience was drawn into a parallel experience, deepening the emotional resonance of the performance.
Failure as Method: From Artistic Process to Product
In this residency, failure was not a negative outcome but an integral part of the creative process. The artists’ uncertainty about the outcome mirrored the audience’s experience, where emotional and cognitive engagement with the work continuously evolved. This aligns with the notion of failure as a method in artistic research. Cardew’s reflection on Buster Keaton’s comedic failure—where success is not the goal but the continual striving for success—is a fitting metaphor for the residency’s performance. The collaboration between the two artists was based on trust, yet their movements, gestures, and interactions often led to unexpected outcomes. These moments of “failure” created space for new interpretations and understandings of the artwork.
Failure in experimental art, as argued by de Duve (1996), can create productive disturbances, altering our perception of the artwork and allowing us to reconsider its boundaries. In this residency, each failure—whether in movement, coordination, or communication—became an opening for growth, creating a dialogue between the artists and the audience that highlighted the unpredictability of the creative process.
Mindfulness and the Role of Emotional Intelligence in the Residency
A key element of the residency was the mindfulness required to navigate emotional states and mental wellbeing. Artistic collaboration demands a high level of emotional intelligence, as noted by Goleman (1995), who emphasized the role of empathy, self-awareness, and emotional regulation in interpersonal relationships. The performance, in which two artists had to communicate silently and through movement, was an exercise in mindfulness—each artist had to be acutely aware of the other’s mental and emotional state.
This process reflects Csikszentmihalyi’s (1990) concept of “flow,” a psychological state in which individuals are fully immersed in a task that challenges both their emotional and cognitive capacities. The artists’ ability to adapt to failure, manage stress, and maintain trust throughout the performance highlighted the importance of emotional regulation and problem-solving in creative collaboration.
Conclusion: Experimentation as a Living Art Form
This residency exemplifies how experimental art transforms failure from a flaw into a tool for discovery. Through the collaboration between a calligrapher and a visual artist, the performance embodied the core principles of experimental art, where the outcome was unknown, and the process itself became the artwork. The interaction between movement, silence, and emotional expression invited the audience into an experience where failure and success were no longer opposites but part of the same continuum.
In line with the ideas presented by Cage, Beckett, and Cardew, this artistic residency demonstrated that failure is an essential part of artistic experimentation. It is through failure that the artists and audience alike are able to push beyond the familiar, creating new pathways for emotional communication, artistic expression, and cognitive engagement. The residency thus becomes a living experiment in both art and human connection, with failure acting as the pulse of its creative heartbeat.
Abstract
In the evolving landscape of contemporary art, the value of failure and
experimentation plays a central role in reshaping artistic research.
This paper explores an artistic residency where the focus shifted from
traditional practices of ink on canvas to performance art using the
human body as a medium of expression. This residency emphasized
uncertainty, experimentation, and emotional expression as the core of
the process. Through collaboration between a calligrapher and a visual
artist, the performance engaged themes of seduction, silence, and the
transition between reality and abstraction. In alignment with
experimental art practices, the process itself became the artwork,
embracing moments of failure and disruption as key components of
creative exploration. This research integrates theories from
neuroscience, psychology, and artistic failure, drawing on the insights
of thinkers like John Cage, Samuel Beckett, and Cornelius Cardew to
further contextualize the residency’s impact.
Introduction: The heart of the experiment
John Cage once said, “I am trying to be unfamiliar with what I’m doing,”
encapsulating the essence of experimental art practices where
uncertainty is the driving force. In artistic research, experimentation
is often at the heart of the process, and the outcome remains unknown.
This lack of a predetermined result transforms both the journey and the
final product into a continuous exploration, where failure is not only
inevitable but desirable. In this residency, we embraced the unknown,
shifting the artistic dialogue from ink on canvas to ink on the human
body, creating a living, breathing artwork where emotions were the
palette and failure became a method of discovery.
Many artistic research projects require clear outcomes, often
restricting experimentation. Yet, experimental art seeks to remove these
boundaries, allowing failure to become an integral part of both the
process and the work itself. This paper explores how this residency’s
focus on performance, movement, and emotional interaction met these
ideals, revealing how experimentation—through silence, seduction, and
the transition from refusal to acceptance—became the heart of the
artistic expression.
Methodology: Embracing uncertainty and failure
The artistic residency functioned as an experimental laboratory where
failure was not feared but embraced. Drawing on Cage’s philosophy of
unfamiliarity and Beckett’s notion of “failing better,” the process
allowed the artists to abandon the need for perfection and instead
explore the limits of emotional expression, communication, and
embodiment.
The performance was set in a dark room, with a single spotlight
illuminating the artists—a calligrapher and a visual artist. The
calligrapher’s body, inscribed with ink, represented a departure from
traditional practices, while the visual artist used his camera to
document the unfolding emotions and moments. Silence and movement were
central to the performance, creating a tension that invited the audience
to engage with the vulnerability of the process. This mirrored Tom
Johnson’s Failing(1975), a piece that requires performers to
confront inevitable failure, resonating with the uncertainty of the
residency’s artistic outcome.
Experimental art theorists, such as Cornelius Cardew, posit that failure
is intrinsic to artistic exploration because it reveals the gap between
human goals and nature’s indifference to success or failure. In this
residency, the focus on human emotions, embodied through movement and
silence, underscored the natural disruptions in communication,
problem-solving, and artistic interaction. Each failure—a misstep in
movement, a hesitation in gesture—became an opportunity to delve
deeper into emotional layers, ultimately enhancing the collaborative
experience.
The neuroscience of artistic failure and emotional expression
Experimental art is inherently tied to the exploration of emotion,
failure, and cognitive engagement. Neuroscientific research highlights
how emotional engagement in art can trigger neural pathways associated
with empathy, problem-solving, and emotional regulation. According to
Damasio’s (1999) theory of embodied emotion, our bodies are active
participants in emotional processing, and failure in art allows for
deeper emotional introspection. The calligraphy inscribed on the skin in
this performance transcended words, representing not only artistic
expression but emotional communication.
The transitions between silence and song, refusal and acceptance, echo
research on how art can stimulate emotional engagement in both the
artist and the audience. Mirror neuron studies by Rizzolatti and
Craighero (2004) suggest that observing others’ actions and emotions can
activate the same neural circuits in the observer, allowing the audience
to “mirror” the emotional journey of the artists. As the performers
navigated their own emotional responses to failure, the audience was
drawn into a parallel experience, deepening the emotional resonance of
the performance.
Failure as method: From artistic process to product
In this residency, failure was not a negative outcome but an integral
part of the creative process. The artists’ uncertainty about the outcome
mirrored the audience’s experience, where emotional and cognitive
engagement with the work continuously evolved. This aligns with the
notion of failure as a method in artistic research. Cardew’s reflection
on Buster Keaton’s comedic failure—where success is not the goal but
the continual striving for success—is a fitting metaphor for the
residency’s performance. The collaboration between the two artists was
based on trust, yet their movements, gestures, and interactions often
led to unexpected outcomes. These moments of “failure” created space for
new interpretations and understandings of the artwork.
Failure in experimental art, as argued by de Duve (1996), can create
productive disturbances, altering our perception of the artwork and
allowing us to reconsider its boundaries. In this residency, each
failure—whether in movement, coordination, or communication—became
an opening for growth, creating a dialogue between the artists and the
audience that highlighted the unpredictability of the creative process.
Mindfulness and the role of Emotional Intelligence in the residency
A key element of the residency was the mindfulness required to navigate
emotional states and mental wellbeing. Artistic collaboration demands a
high level of emotional intelligence, as noted by Goleman (1995), who
emphasized the role of empathy, self-awareness, and emotional regulation
in interpersonal relationships. The performance, in which two artists
had to communicate silently and through movement, was an exercise in
mindfulness—each artist had to be acutely aware of the other’s mental
and emotional state.
This process reflects Csikszentmihalyi’s (1990) concept of “flow,” a
psychological state in which individuals are fully immersed in a task
that challenges both their emotional and cognitive capacities. The
artists’ ability to adapt to failure, manage stress, and maintain trust
throughout the performance highlighted the importance of emotional
regulation and problem-solving in creative collaboration.
Conclusion: Experimentation as a living art form
This residency exemplifies how experimental art transforms failure from
a flaw into a tool for discovery. Through the collaboration between a
calligrapher and a visual artist, the performance embodied the core
principles of experimental art, where the outcome was unknown, and the
process itself became the artwork. The interaction between movement,
silence, and emotional expression invited the audience into an
experience where failure and success were no longer opposites but part
of the same continuum.
In line with the ideas presented by Cage, Beckett, and Cardew, this
artistic residency demonstrated that failure is an essential part of
artistic experimentation. It is through failure that the artists and
audience alike are able to push beyond the familiar, creating new
pathways for emotional communication, artistic expression, and cognitive
engagement. The residency thus becomes a living experiment in both art
and human connection, with failure acting as the pulse of its creative
heartbeat.