LIM(I)NAL

LIM(I)NAL – an online exhibition of new drawings by artist Alastair MacLennan  along with drawings by others made in response to his score, via an open submission.

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Unable to travel due to COVID 19 restrictions, MacLennan, well-known for his site-responsive ‘actuations’ (his term for performance/installations) has been using his Belfast studio in the last nine months for daily drawing actions. Focusing on a twisted paper napkin, he draws on two A2 sized pieces of paper simultaneously with both hands using his peripheral vision. He uses material that ‘normally’ don’t mix, like oil, charcoal and ink, to experiment with the possibility of material’ interbeing’. He leaves the drawings to dry on the floor, often for days, after which he further balances the compositions by adding texts, and marks according to specific rules using the I Ching as a reference point. The drawings and the act-of-drawing are documented by photographer Jordan Hutchings and sent to Dundee to be added to the exhibition and the Digital Archive in advance before the physical drawings arrive at the collection in DJCAD.

The digital photographs are a slowly growing body of work that document the performative materiality of MacLennan’s post-COVID private performance practice. In addition to the drawings, MacLennan’s scores for drawing are also displayed. These scores provide an insight into the artist’s making processes and are a call for action, inviting others to draw in their own time according to their imagination and using their chosen implement(s).

Curated by Judit Bodor & Adam Lockhart