Idea:

I want to do something involving underlining text. I had an epiphany last semester while I was doing a relatively boring reading... we underline "important" information in in textbooks/books for class/ect. I thought about this a few weeks or so after my best friend told me about this poem.

I'd like to make some sort of piece which involves the importance/significance behind the marks we make in books - whether they be notes written in the margins of a book or underlining. Of course, I don't know if I'd be able to do it about just any old book, especially not a text book. I just love the idea of books lately, of people having them before you, ect. Also, I love the idea of the "mark" and "mark making".


Earlier Jay was talking about the idea of tattoos, and how the artist is leaving their mark on your body. You come up with this design and have them draw it on you, but its not their design (even if specific artists have their own "style"). And I like that too, the idea of impersonal/personal, intimacy, ect. Perhaps it could be something involving other people leaving marks, other people directly affecting the piece, rather than just recording/commenting on things.

Maybe I should just go the library and check out some books? Should I participate in the act of underlining/leaving marks/ect. but in a different way? By that I mean... should I find other "important" things to underline in real life? Or, what if we wrote little notes on things we had comments on in real life? I suppose graffiti kind of does that.

They're just something so personal about reading books, I just love the feel and idea of them. I'd love to capture that, that personal, intimate feeling. Unless you own the book, someone else has touched it and used it before you - does that make it less intimate, more intimate? Less special?

So! I haven't really thought about execution or anything. It'd be interesting to do a book again, but I'd have to do it really well. It'd be cool to take the idea of underlining/writing in the margins and apply it to other aspects of life, and THEN make a book. Or to just find some sort of significant novel or something, I dunno. I feel like the first idea is better. Also, ridiculously connected to my thesis. Man.

I could also make a series of prints or small drawings - depends on when I'd do it. After I graduate I might not have very easy access to a printing press...

Anyway, those are my thoughts. I'd love to do this eventually, but right now I don't have time. I at least have to finish this damn mural first!

I don't know if any of this makes sense... but typing it out definitely helped.