Vincent Trasov and Micheal Morris Lecture 1 and 2

Micheal Morris and Vincent Trasov both spoke at the University of Lethbridge on their own career and experiences in the arts.
        Micheal began his career in nineteen sixty four graduating from art school in London England. His experiences in London led him to Canada where he had the idea of reinventing art and the way people thought about art towards the end of the sixty's. In nineteen sixty five Micheal successfully had his first painting exhibited in a juried exhibition, the work was an abstract piece. He believed that art was an enigma, a puzzle that needed to be figured out and investigated.  Working with sections of coloured strips scrambled together, this arraignment expressed his state of mind at the time. Soon he began experimenting with different materials moving beyond the canvas. For example, incorporating inserts of plexi glass, mirrors and steel. This allowed him to break up space. Michael was specifically interested in the reflective quality and glossy finishes and how they alter the viewers perceptions. The painting became more like objects, engaging the viewer’s peripheral vision.
       Micheal soon partnered with Vincent Trasov in an attempt to circulate art around the country. During this time art was often limited to its geographical boarders. Using the postal service they sent out to each address and asked each artist to document their experience with a photograph. Much to the delight of both men the project was well received being recorded over sixty times. This created a conversation, and communication between artists that did not exist before.
       Vincent began his art in nineteen sixty five on the grounds of the University of British Columbia. His interest at the time was taking combustible liquids and setting them on fire. He was interested in the process, and in some cases not burning the objects completely but rather trying to control the forces.
        A popular idea within the artistic community at the time was embracing an alter ego or persona. This was illustrated with Vincents work "Mr. Peanut", growing up he recalls having a colouring book that featured Mr. Peanut. Fascinated with this idea he document his experience as Mr. Peanut through drawings, film and an actual run at Vancouver's mayoral campaign. This idea truly animated the city and the people became part of the performance. Since there were not great issues to address during this campaign, he was able to use this opportunity to bring art back to the people.
          Also during this period Vincent and Micheal decided to explore their interests in time lapse photography, joining a group of artists at a nature retreat. Using multiple groups of paint chips they arranged and dispersed them within the environment. The props would transform into works of art, image bars would create endless paintings. Documenting the various arrangements of the paint chips became very important. For example, the artist would scatter large groups of paint chips in the water and record the random nature as they floated around. The whole experience was documented in sixteen millimeter film, with no sound. This experience was coined baby land, their idea of an Utopian ideal, a place where artists could meet and act out their own ideas and feel comfortable doing it.
         The area of contemporary performance art today is greatly influenced by the ground breaking ideas Vincent and Micheal began exploring. Both men lived and worked during a generation of art making that saw a complete reinvention contrary to what was being produced.