Geomentality: Reframing the Landscape

Abstract

This work is part of a wider investigation into a notion of landscape that includes the sense of belonging to, remembering and viewing land and space. It has come about as a result of the need for a language of interpretation that is effective in relation to the work of artists dealing with land and space who may not be primarily concerned with its appearance. The paper is set out in the form of four conceptual maps of the land. It is structured according to these four sites in order to present different sides of a model of thinking about landscape painting that encompasses historical perspectives, cultural positions and individual artistic orientation, all of which are present to varying degrees in a particular work. For the fourth mapping of this concept, the author’s own work will be used as an example. The paper does not set out to deal with the history of landscape painting, nor with the philosophy or theory of landscape painting. It is an attempt to synthesise a few ideas from different disciplines into a discourse that could serve as a model for thinking and speaking about the intentions and concerns of contemporary artists dealing with notions of land. It attempts to locate this contemporary practice in relation to the tradition of landscape painting on one hand, and on the other, in the context of a decentred and global spatial network.