Textecution: a post-digital model for hypertextual creation (R-9064)

This research project is a thorough artistic and theoretical exploration of a post-digital model for hypertextual creation - textecution - that unites principles of an oral, script, print and electronics culture by means of a digital technology and logic. This form of text production and consumption originates from the idea that text is not dead matter, but can be conceived as a living, performative substance. In this respect, 'publishing' can be seen as a process where the actions, events and processes that result in a textual artefact are equally important as the artefact itself. The realization of this model for hypertextual creation will be inspired by an indepth study of the techniques and methodology of the French artist Guy de Cointet, which he developed in the years 1960-1970. His multidisciplinary practice in which performance, design, installation and text relate to each other in a state of constant flux and tension, serves as a conceptual paradigm for a contemporary reorientation of hypertext. The explicitation of textecution will comprise both a written, media-theoretical framework and an artistic trajectory. Both parts will evolve and correlate simultaneously. The central objective is the extensive development of reading and writing instruments and processes: textecutioners. In these installations and performances elements of orality, writing, printing and electronics will merge into a coherent whole. The realization of this 'language use' challenges established notions and forms of publication, highlights the impact of technology on our conception of text and contributes to innovative developments within the artistic and literary field. The research project will also result in a substantial contribution to the disclosure of Guy de Cointet's body of work, which until now has remained relatively underexposed.

Keywords:Visual Literacy

Disciplines:Curatorial and related studies, History, Art studies and sciences, Artistic design, Audiovisual art and digital media, Heritage, Music, Theatre and performance, Visual arts