Exquisite Corpse Machine #4

2017

Wood, Paper, Misc. Metal Hardware

32" W x 26" D x 35" H

Exquisite Corpse Machine #4 is one of a series of collaborative art-making mechanisms inspired by the "Exquisite Corpse" game.

“Exquisite Corpse” is a parlor game popularized by surrealists in Paris in the 1920s. It was initially a game for writers in which each participant would add a word or a phrase to a story and allow the work to evolve in unexpected ways. The drawing version is similar: visitors/artists add to a drawing without seeing what came before. The game embraces chance and randomness. The results are often unpredictable and interesting.

The intent of the "Exquisite Corpse Machine #4" is to encourage collaborative art-making without a facilitator. The form factor of the piece is inviting and formal artistic skills are not required. The mechanism is manually operated and made from wooden gears and components. The crank turns a spindle which advances the paper. Visitors/artists add to the composition and advance the roll so a small portion of their drawing is exposed for the nest person. The next visitor/artist will add to it, creating a continuous drawing that grows throughout the exhibition. Drawings are often displayed on a wall adjacent to the piece.

Photos by Linda Hamlin, PD Rearick and the DIA.

NFS