Light and Color

Light and color are symbolic forms of transgression per se. As physical entities they only become tangible through temporal and spacial expansion, immediately touching the eye of the observer. As this lecture’s central thesis will point out, their symbolic meaning thus stands in direct relation to their energetic quality. At the same time, the intensive use of light and color in modern art refers to a specific metaphysical thinking, which is still deeply rooted in religious thought. The interplay of light and color is also not only transgressive, but in a way aggressive, as it provides an arena for competition with established and novel art forms. However, the drive for originality and need for repetition and replication only appear to oppose each other. As part of the workshop Quotes & Appropriation, the lecture aims to illustrate that the most groundbreaking artworks—from painting to film and comics—have triggered an upsurge in appropriation. Vice versa it may be claimed that novel artworks are created only through enduring repetition. Within the transgression of light and color this creative dialectic acquires its unique function—as both a mediator of information and as an expression of a specific, creative way of thinking in modern art.