In the Pulitzer's short history, Ann Hamilton's stylus breaks new ground in so many ways: it is our first commissioned installation in the building and the first multi-sensory exploration of Tadao Ando's architecture. Ann's artistic intervention extends into the urban fabric of St. Louis and permeates all our institutional activities, from programming, to catalogue, to web.
When we asked Ann to write an artistic statement for stylus, we received, via e-mail, a stream of poetry. This response echoes the flow of conversations that led to her project and its associated layers of programming. From the initial brainstorming meetings — Ann referred to them as "what-if-conversations" — to the opening itself, an increasing number of people have generated ideas, projects, and sub-projects that will unfold over the duration of the installation.
If pressed, I would say that this project deals with the raw material of communication. Familiar forms of interaction are de-contextualized, then stitched back together into a new, poetic entity that resonates with our most basic experiences experiences. In that sense, Ann's creation is not without parallels to Tadao Ando's architecture, which breaks down our perception of nature into building blocks that are reconstituted in an abstract new entity.
stylus is also rooted in the greater context of our city, which Ann explored during her many visits, beginning three years ago. In 2009, she taught a summer course at the Sam Fox School of Design and the Visual Arts at Washington University in St. Louis, taking St. Louis's landscape — cultural and physical — as its subject. The Pulitzer Endowment for Collaborative Projects between my institution and the Sam Fox School made that teaching engagement possible. It also allowed a group of students from Washington University to participate in the exhibition preparation, from the construction of thousands of papier-mâché hands, to the printing of banners and flyers.
This project would not have been possible without the artistic collaboration of composer Shahrokh Yadegari, who designed the sound for stylus with the invaluable assistance of Toby Algya.
The Pulitzer's particular gratitude goes to two artists on the faculty of the Sam Fox School for their generous help: Joan Hall, Kenneth E. Hudson Professor of Art and Director of Island Press, as well as Tom Reed, Master Printer and Island Print Shop Coordinator.
The collaborators in Ann's studio have been of crucial importance in so many ways: Jamie Boyle and Colin McDonald, along with Anjali Scrinivasen and Nick Vasko. Our warm thanks also goes to Michael Casselli for his substantial role in the installation. The Pulitzer staff, who responded to each challenge creatively, needs to be mentioned with gratitude, too: Rachel Craft, Lisa Harper Chang, Elise Johnson, Helene Rundell, and Shane Simmons. Last but not least, my deep appreciation for his continued support goes to Carmon Colangelo, Dean of the Sam Fox School of Design & Visual Arts and E. Desmond Lee Professor for Collaboration in the Arts.
stylus is a multilayered project with interactive programs developing throughout its installation. Therefore, it is impossible, at this point, to thank all those involved in the project. The website, annhamilton.pulitzerarts.org, will document this evolution. Additionally, this catalogue is an evolving project in its own right: designed as a box, it will be filled over time, growing with the exhibition. In that sense, this institutional introduction is not final either: it is destined to be rewritten at the end of stylus, acknowledging all the help and collaboration benefitting this project.
Matthias Waschek,
Director of the Pulitzer Foundation for the Arts, and curator of stylus
