reprage

Just start writing whatever shit comes into your head. Don’t worry about grammar, logic, or reason. Don’t censor or block; capture it all as it meanders past your consciousness. That’s ‘free writing’ in a nutshell - it’s like brainstorming, and I’m using it as a strategy to get this post moving.

When I’m making sculptures, it’s a similar process. All these thoughts wander through my head, and I try to catch them all.

This might be easier to explain with an example - last week, I finally made my own ISRU Chess set. It was a fascinating build, and it got me thinking all about status in the Middle Ages. Sure, Chess has a hierarchy where all the pieces have a different ‘status.’ But when you combine them all into a team? Any unit can win, but only when they are in the right place at the right time; it flattens the whole hierarchy out.

There were other ideas: little gut feelings and intuitions that went into decisions along the way. I can’t put them into words, just that they seemed important when I was thinking about status. I don’t think I would have considered any of this stuff if I didn’t make a Chess set.

I wonder? What sort of thoughts did Tom have when making his Chess set? Was it similar sorts of stuff or something different? What about you? When you made your own ISRU Chess set, what thoughts meandered past your consciousness?

A photo of the apollo program themed Chess set by Tom Sachs.

Originally written for the Sachsian Syndicate.

Previously: TGIM 45 - … These days though? I can cheat - whip out the phone, flash a picture, and grunt like a Neanderthal. “Aisle six, up the back above the hose clamps.” Progress.

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