Luc Tuymans has said;
“It’s more about memory and mimicry, about (re)constructing what might have happened.” Dexter & Heynen(2004)p8
In her write up for an exhibition catalogue in 2004 Emma Dexter stated;
“Tuymans uses these indirect means to explore not just history, but a painting of memory, its failures and illusions.” Dexter & Heynen(2004)p16
So memory is important to producing and viewing art. As Gerhard Richter says;
“We only find paintings interesting because we always search for something that looks familiar to us” Storr(2002)p304
What exactly is meant by the term memory? The Collins English Dictionary lists nine possible definitions, the most useful, for the purposes of this blog seem to be; “The ability of the brain to store and recall past sensations, thoughts, knowledge, etc” and “ The sum of everything retained by the mind.”
As one looks further into the subject the more elusive a definition becomes. In the book Memory in the Real World Gillian Cohen divides memory up into many different types; memory of intentions, memory for places, memory for events, memory for faces etc, etc. add to this the concepts of long term memory, short term memory, visual memory, tactile memory, explicit memory inferred memory etc and add in the biological basis of memory; neural change induced by learning etc the subject becomes so huge that an understanding of it seems almost impossible.
One thing that becomes clear, however, is that it is not constant, we all have different capacities and abilities when it comes to encoding, storing and retrieving experience. This may be due to injury, illness or simply that some people have good memories and others don’t.
If this is the case it may be justifiable to ask; If a work of art induces memories in the viewer to what extent would these be shared memories?
This is an image taken from the publicity material for the 1972 film Caberet. I painted this because I remember seeing the film as an impressionable teenager. The events in the film are of secondary importance to the events that were taking place in my life at the time, indeed the film really only provides a backdrop of longed for decadence to my recollections of my youth.
I, however, am the only person in existence who has these precise memories and yet many people who view this painting, even younger people who have never even heard of the film, seem to appreciate it and take something from it.
This then is surely what Tuymans meant when he referred to “constructing what might have been” a good painting is one that offers possibilities rather than fixed and documented events.
“memory is always partial, and can indeed be deceptive, creating a kind of forged or false version of experience to replace actuality.”
Luc TuymansDexter & Heynen(2004)p12
Emma Dexter and Julian Heynen (ed) (2004). Luc Tuymans. London: Tate publishing. p1 et-al.
Robert Storr (2002). Gerhard Richter, Forty Years of Painting.. New York: The Museum of Modern Art. p286-309.
