"Powerful Silence"
The phenomenon and the visual manifestations of "silence" in the artworks of Agnes Martin
"Kraftvolle Stille"
Zum Phänomen und den visuellen Manifestationsformen von "Stille" im bildkünstlerischen Werk von Agnes Martin
The subject of this master's thesis is the question of the phenomenon and the visual manifestations of "silence" in the artworks of Agnes Martin. The basic assumption is that "silence" is a phenomenon in the perception of her pictures, which is evoked by the designed materiality and opens up the dimension and force of a mental and physical involvement of the viewer. "Silence" is seen as an aesthetic experience of the visual, that raises questions about the "what" and "how" of the creations and their effects. The study shows that the minutely developed and calculated compositions of colour and form focus on the tension and relation between the object and the subject. This can be seen as an idea of the picture creating threshold spaces in the aesthetic experience.
On the other hand, this research on the aesthetics of reception and production lead to the theoretical and scholarly reflection on the historical and art-historical positioning of the artist Agnes Martin, with the view towards the art discourse from the 1960s up to the 21st century. In the figurative sense, the pictures of Martin formulate questions regarding the viewer and his "being in the world". These questions are highly relevant in the design context to regain consciousness and understanding of manners and processes that have become so distant in an industrial and consumption society.
