Better the illusions of subjectivity than the impostures of objectivity. Better the imaginary of the Subject than its censorship
Roland Barthes
The Preparation of the Artwork
What follows is a statement of intent. A note on a ‘work in progress’. A parabase. A comment of preparation…
Taking inspiration from Roland Barthes’ Preparation of the Novel, this projects sets out to ‘prepare’ a lecture course on the preparation of the artwork. The idea is to literally prepare such a course, but also to produce it as a publication in the form of a lecture course. As such, in the manner of software updates, the ambition is to first establish the main substantial draft for publication (to be made available in paperback and ebook formats), which will then be updated with new iterations or updates. NB.The layout of the text will likely adopt a variation on the Cornell Note-Taking System.
Taking a line from Preparation of the Novel, there is a ‘huge risk’ in announcing something in this manner. ‘To say something out loud, in advance,’ Barthes writes, ‘is to destroy it; to designate too early is to attract bad luck. […] Ordinarily, I take this kind of risk very seriously; I never allow myself to talk about the book I’m going to write.’ Ordinarily, I would take the same precautions when preparing a new work. The reluctance to say it ‘out loud’ what we are working on is perhaps rather common. It is very noticeable, for example, with the exchange between a PhD candidate and a supervisor, there is often a reluctance to declare too soon. And, understandably, there is often little to declare until we have finally written or made something. Yet, the opportunity to gain feedback on what we do produce in a timely manner can be so important and enriching. This is the situation of the preparation, but it is a domain we rarely discuss and reflect upon.
It is likely this project will take much longer to realise than I might wish, and not least due to a number of distractions. Some distractions are welcome, self-made (new project ideas that somehow will greater engagement; a change of direction, perhaps prescribed as a new year’s resolution; pursuits ‘outside’ of work); while others can be out of one’s control (a change in circumstance; a life event of significance; or perhaps an opportunity presents itself that is simply too hard to refuse!). In addition, of course, there is simply the matter of what it takes to practically prepare (and to prepare oneself for) a project, as Barthes so nicely captures in an entry on ‘Planning’:
To go from the Project Work to its Fabrication: where’s the difficulty? — in the Planning, which means, specifically, this is the Project I’ve selected; I’m going to set to work → What shall I work on tomorrow? Which operation? Sit at my desk, remain there, with my arms folded, thinking? It’s a truth test: sometimes a project is exciting, appealing but when your back’s against the wall you have no idea how to divide it up into the multiple operations that will gradually advance its realization: it’s a question of coming up with a daily procedure, an agenda of things to do, which cashes in, converts the Project.
To be continued…
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