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During this project I developed a number of works; Tabletop
experiments.
This led to my interest in processes rather than material art
objects or works. I worked between the cibvile engenering dept. and areospace
with a spesific interest in fluid mechanics. I investigated flow dynamics
of bubbes in viscose solution as well as rthe effect ofvibration
on matter such as fluids, and
how these can manifest themselves in domestic
substances, such as soap, coffee and sugar.
This
process of observation and continued repeated or durational experimentation
fascinated me. It was this process of slowness, and perpetuated expectation,
generating, and ultimately capturing the tiny and intricate phenomena,
that I wanted to engage with. My work in the labs used domestic,
and DIY materials to create 'experimental devices. I treated the
laboratory as an environment of continual surveillance, by using
CCTV cameras and employing the use of web cameras to broadcast and
record images. The notion and process of repetition, cyclical circulation
and flow led me to consider the meditative potential of scientific
methodology.
UMIST artist in residence program received several Arts Council funding
grants.
FLUID, Mission Gallery, Swansea, catalogue text
"Antony Hall has been Artist in Residence in the Fluids Lab
at the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology. During this
time he has produced a body of work exploring the behavior of household liquids
through the display of 'table-top experiments'.
Projection detail
"Fluid
offers the viewer the opportunity to observe the performance of
liquids as they behave according to their particular characteristics.
Drip Projector is a projection, through a microscope, of a drop
of green washing-up liquid as it grows in size, becomes heavy and
falls. The projector is mounted on a wooden tripod above head height
and the image is projected large-scale onto the gallery wall. Bubble
Projector shows every detail of a foaming detergent solution contained
in a specially made 'projection tank'. Hall's projections present
us with the aesthetic qualities of ordinary, everyday substances
on a cinematic scale."
Projection device 'helle shaw cell"
Each
piece of work is an ongoing experiment that needs to be nurtured
throughout its life in the gallery. Oil Drips need refilling with
olive, baby or engine oil every day and the Coffee Cup Oscillator
has to be filled with fresh coffee once a week. The live element
of Hall's work offers the possibility that no two visitors to the
gallery will see exactly the same pieces of work, as each one is
constantly changing in form and appearance.
Projection
device 'helle shaw cell"
"The process of working in the Fluids lab at UMIST was vital in the development
of this new work. Apprehensive at first about working in an academic laboratory
environment, Hall decided to begin working as if he were one of the fluid researchers,
using the equipment around him to set up experiments. Art and science are often
described as different realities, with different motivations, methods and results.
Hall's work perhaps draws attention to a part of scientific inquiry that we
do not often see; the hypothetical or observational stage, or the part that
occurs before any conclusion or ‘knowledge' is reached. His work is not
results-driven in the scientific sense, but reminds us of the aesthetic qualities
of the materials he works with, qualities which in turn depend upon those aspects
which we would describe as ‘scientific' - viscosity, weight and frequency.
The work itself acts as a mediator between disciplines, drawing attention to
the fact that the kinds of divisions we make between science and art are never
straightforward."
C.
Ganaway 2003
Hele shaw cells
A Hele-Shaw cell can be used to explore a variety of phenomena
that involve surface tension and viscosity simultaneously.
Being two-dimensional the effects are easy to observe, Waves
growing exponentially on an unstable interface, and tear
drops falling
slowly down the cell for example. In this case Super glue interfaces
with less viscose ink fluid, freezing the result almost instantly.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/antonyhall/sets/72157603927042653/
Oil Drip
Controlled Oild drip using nylon mono filiment
