What is a drawing?

New Zealand artist Kirsty Lillico recently won the annual Parkin Drawing Prize, which netted her $20,000. The question her win has raised is, was her piece, titled "State Block," actually a drawing? It consisted of pieces of carpet draped over string.

Lillico said, "Drawing, to me, it's not just about a pencil and paper. I'm using a knife and carpet and hanging it in a space to achieve the same ends."

The prize's patron, Chris Parkin, admits that the piece stretches the definition of a drawing, but he notes it was "still lines, at the end of the day... somebody has taken a knife, and started a line and taken it for a walk."

More info: stuff.co.nz

"State Block"

Books Selected and endorsed for Pure Weirdness by Your WU Team

Who We Are
Alex Boese Alex is the creator and curator of the Museum of Hoaxes. He's also the author of various weird, non-fiction, science-themed books such as Elephants on Acid and Psychedelic Apes. Paul Di Filippo Paul has been paid to put weird ideas into fictional form for over forty years, in his career as a noted science fiction writer. Contact Us

Posted By: Alex - Wed Aug 02, 2017
Category: Art

Comments

Wow, twenty thousand for a bunch of carpet scraps. But it's not a drawing as defined:

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/drawing

But then most artistes aren't known for their academic prowess. Perhaps a dictionary would have been a more fitting award.

Posted by KDP on 08/02/17 at 08:02 AM

Definitely is one of the pieces that needs to have a sign at night, so the janitor will know to not throw it out with the other rubbish.

Posted by Virtual on 08/02/17 at 10:39 AM

She has a sharp knife, a strong arm, and a distorted sense of reality. Who's going to argue with her?

Posted by Phideaux on 08/02/17 at 10:57 AM

Thanks for the Webster definition; I hope the Parkin Drawing Price judges read it. I still wonder how this sculpture won a price over there.

Posted by Yudith on 08/06/17 at 06:53 AM

Commenting is not available in this channel entry.