Intrigued to find out what would happen to his creative practice if he chose to lead a ‘life beyond the screen’, in 2015 artist Sam Winston started making art in a blacked-out studio. He spent extended periods of time living and drawing in complete darkness, from seven days to a stretch of 30 days and nights in 2018. In total Winston has spent over 1,000 hours living and working without light, during which time he has created images, books and projects inspired by his experiences of sensory reduction.
As part of his investigation into the creative potential of total darkness, Winston invited award-winning authors Bernardine Evaristo and Max Porter, and poets Don Paterson and Raymond Antrobus to experience the effects of time in the dark for themselves, encouraging them ‘to do nothing, to literally stop, and give themselves the space and time to wind down, without an agenda, and just see what happens.’ Each writer spent a period of time from a few hours to overnight alone and in the dark, and wrote an original text in response to the experience. These are collected in a limited-edition artist’s book along with a pair of drawings Winston produced during and after his 30-day stint in the dark.
This experimental workshop includes a guided drawing practice using techniques Winston developed during his darkness residencies, for which participants will experience a short period of sensory reduction using light-blocking eye masks; the screening of Anna Price’s short film about A Delicate Sight, and a discussion considering the overlaps between drawing and writing, such as asemic, or wordless writing, non-linear writing, and the idea of writing as drawing. Participants will receive a copy of the artist’s book, A Delicate Sight, designed by A Practice for Everyday Life.
