Intuition

Choices are made with a combination of cognition and intuition. In addition to my "Tools for Making Decisions," "In Between" includes 1000 paper bows which represent accumulated experience and memory, or the basis of intuition. When I was considering this aspect of the piece, my first thought was to make the bows in metal and maybe paint them white, but after talking with my students and Curtis Arima, one of the instructors at CCA, I realized metal was not appropriate. Curtis asked me "Why metal?" and I answered by saying I felt "obligated," and I knew right away, that obligation was not a good enough reason. Instead, paper was the right choice, a light-weight, ephemeral material. I used large Canson sheets in white with a bit of body to them and cut a few bows in different sizes until I found a size that felt right. I picked monofilament to hang them from and suspended long lengths from the skylight in the elevator. I left the ends of the monofilament uncut and tied the bows closer together as I reached the bottom.

It took two days to hang the bows, and at the end of the first day, I found myself delightfully surprised by what was happening as the bows moved and interacted with light from above. There was an unexpected gray-scale and a graphic quality, while the monofilament added extra visual detail and subtle light effects. The changes in light from day to night were also interesting to observe. I chose to pile several hundred bows on the floor of the elevator, as well, and hung a few pieces underneath the table itself, all to add to the feeling of accumulation. I wanted my memories, my intuition, to hover and surround the cognitive tools arranged on the table.

Thanks for reading.