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John Hooper

Place of birth Morocco
Country of residence United Kingdom

The use of squares in the first place 1969-72 in Canada was suggested by chess playing - due to diagrams to record games in progress - and then as units of decisions in progression -
and actually developed from movement across landscape paintings.
The interest in repetition is concerned with permanence, security, stability and comfort and with artists like Vasarely, Gene Davis, Bridget Riley, Claude Toussigniant and others. Balance seemed to dictate an alternating of direction of the semi-diagonals of lines of squares produced by continuing the knight's move which turns out to be at 27 or 63 degrees.
These produce the same colour every 5th square and when one line meets a square already used, it is not re-coloured but jumped over. Each new colour finds more squares already used hence reduces in number per 25-square block, finally with the last 2 reducing to one each where the tendency is of¬ten to make these stand out.
The practical reason for the colours is differentiation. Practicality was inspired to some extent by Bruce Nauman and Richard Serra in "Materials and Procedures" at the Witney museum New York 1969. The multiplicity of colours, however, eventually gave the opportunity for a vast amount of fantasy, changes and variation. Also these develop a degree of illusionism which is not always avoided - but rather is utilised.
I later found - perhaps 5 years ago - that if! introduced a 10th colour to the 9 needed to fill any space in this manner but at 45 degrees instead of the above, I would get the same colour every 4th square horizontally and vertically. To give more space I alternated squares used and not used at 45 degrees. If this last is used first, with no colours needing to be jumped over, it gives me a consistent interference of intervals of 4ths with the others at 5ths -causing I found a variation to the previous consistency.
The colours might be changed considerably as repainting progressed. This is demanded by a need to examine different colour combinations and to correct continuous overspill beyond each square. Such may be the result of fatigue as much as enthusiasm - both of which - in an expressionist tradition - creeps into a classicist one. This might be a reason to continue to work for ever but is cur¬tailed, if not for aesthetic reasons before, then by simply coming to the end of the 4 sides of the canvas where I note the dates and colours used. These form an independent and automatic pattern pointing-up the character of the main part of the work. Balance is aided by the turning of the canvas while working. Lines are by-products or "gifts". The canvas proportion of9 to 7 I find less predictable than others.

Exhibitions Start Your Collection 2008!, 01.Aug - 20.Sep.08, Contemporary Art Projects

 

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