The hand and clay-to push

Unless otherwise stated all work © Kim Norton.

'Vision reveals what the touch already knows. We could think of the sense of touch as the unconscious of vision.' 
The eyes of the skin P42 Juhani Pallasmaa

Initiated by Richard Serra's Verb List 1967-8 Physical Traces of Making explores forms of communication and expression through gesture and movement, action and reflection. Looking at ideas around the haptic, through process led exploration and research. Setting out to answer some of these questions.

Are we aware of our haptic skills and tacit knowledge?

OR

Do we have limitations of language for haptic/tacit knowledge?

When we have more experience and material knowledge do we as makers make assumptions about material behaviour?

OR

Challenge our assumptions about a shared material.

Haptics 
Relating to the sense of touch, in particular relating to the perception and manipulation of objects using the senses of touch and proprioception Oxford dictionary

The hand and the material

The hand and the making

The hand and the process

The body and the making

The mark and the making

The mark and the process

'Touch is the sensory mode that integrates our experience of the world with that of ourselves. Even visual perceptions are fused and integrated into haptic continuum of the self' The eyes of the skin P42 Juhani Pallasmaa


By stripping away the use of tools and simply using hands, weight and pressure are used to reach different outcomes.
The visual language is ultimately be led by the process. As each individual mark has an imprint according to body structure and strength as well as your own interpretation and understanding of the words. 

Exploration began in 2011 and has since been adapted as a series of workshops with haptic/tacit. First at Camberwell Space as part of the exhibition ‘On The Way To Language’ (2018 Curated by Maiko Tsutsumi.) Oriel Myrddin Gallery (2018) and Restating Clay Symposium, Ceramic Communities, Cardiff (2019)