mediaRatherthanbeingareferentialbodyformappingouttheevolutionaryprogressionofascriptnotationsofamendmentsinsertionsdeletionsorsimplybeddeddownforaclosedreadingthetranscriptionisamomentaryflash ID: 150891
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SiteRe:citeGaryHillSite,Theplacewheresomethingwas,isoristobelocated.Recite,fromLatinrecitare,toreadout,citeagain:re-,back,again+citare,tosetinmotion,summon.FromtheIndo-Europeanroot,kei;Suffixedform,ki-neu-inGreek,kinein,tomove:(-KINESIS),...,CINEMATOGRAPH,...TELEKINESIS[kei-:fromPokorny'sIn-dogermanischesEtymologischesWorterbuch,538]Herein:bracketedoff,framed,safefromincision,averifiedmomentakintoaphotograph,howevercropped,ofthelife(and"littledeaths")ofatext-atranscriptionfromavideotapeentitled,SiteRecite(aprologue).'WhynottheepiloguetoIncidenceofCatastrophe?'Whatmightitbeaprologueto?Isthiswritingaprologuetoit?WhatamIprolonging?AmIloggingontothetext?Theimagefoldedinthedoublebindofframeandcontext.Permanenceoftheactwasmarginalwithaperforatededgeoflightheartedness.Thehandreciprocatedwithoneswiftmovement.Damagewasnegligibletothere-mainingbacktobackfacades.3Thetranscription(atextinquestion)isonlybutafragmentamongfragmentsfromalargertextualweave.Perhapsitcouldbesaidthatitisholographic-any"fragment"containsthewhole(thesamebutnotidentical).Movingbackwordstothetext(in)question,SiteRecitehasbeenseen,heard,recorded,erased,coded,transcribedandpublished.These"versions"willhaveexistedforreasonsotherthanvarieddissemi-nation.Theyareinfactuneasyoutsidethehybridmediaspacesfromwhichtheyarose.(Surelythereareothersinhiding.)Thequestionherebecomeshowtomarkthedifferences,ifthereareany,betweenwritingandwhatIhavecometorefertoasanelectroniclinguistic.'Notwithstandingtheplayoftheseen/unseen,thetracesand(re)remarkingsofbeginnings&ends,andotherintertextualmodalities,thescoringherewillbealongthetranstextual-howthetextisinti-matelyentwinedinaprocessofoverwritingitselfasitpassesbetween media.Ratherthanbeingareferentialbodyformappingouttheevolutionaryprogressionofa"script"-notationsofamendments,insertions,deletions,orsimplybeddeddownforaclosedreading,thetranscriptionisamomentaryflashing,orperhaps,anepistlefromatext(inquestion).Onemoreofhowevermanymorere-presentationssurfacinginthewakeofvideo.Whatfollowsthenisataleofthetext,thethreadsofwhichareentangledinabriarpatchofpicture,TheEvilDemonofImages(Baudrillard).Itshallbeareconnaissancetosituatethedebris,thetextualshrapnelintheaftermathofbrisancewithinthegardenofinscription.Herethenwillbeawritingworkofexcavation;pouringsatanarcheologicalsitelatertobeoverturned.Whatkindofcracksandfissureswillappearastextandcastseparate?Theoutlineseparatingthemouthandwordswasprerecorded.'Icouldsaythattheprogenitor,themythicseedingofSiteRecitetookplaceinthemidstofwritingPrimarilySpeaking'...sometimein1981orwasit80?Couldtherehavebeenaspecificday,anexacttime,amoment,apausebetweenthesewingofidioms,aburrinthetwine... thinkitover\trattleoffalistifthat'sallthat'sleft\t127nevermindtheimages\ttheyalwaysreturn\tifnotnewoneswillreplacetheoldones\tit'stheirdestinyeventhosepermanentlylodged\tsoonerorlaterlosetheirgrasp\tit'sthenatureofthebeast...aphrasesetaside,asinglewordthatresonatedinthemargins-averbalcocoon,apinpoint(no-body,notevenIheardtheneedledrop).Themindcan'thelpbutminceandsuddenlyyou'rebesideyourselfenter-tainingapartyoftwoonlytofallbackafewsteps,afewwordsgoneby,afewinstructionsonhowtogetfrompointAtopointB[pointsknownonlybytheneedlethatrecordseverything]7Fromacataloguestatementexcerptedfromwhatwasthenthe(textin)question.AmarginalthoughtforthescreeningofWhyDoThingsGetinaMuddle?(ComeOnPetunia),whereinanexceptiontoaslipperyentropicdialoguecomestomind.Afterhavingheardherfatherexplainbyenumeratedexampleswhythingstendtowardschaosratherthantowardstidiness,thedaughtercitestheexamplesintheexactreverseorderfromthewayshehadheardthemduringthecourseofthedialogue:"ThenDaddy,areyousayingthesamethingaboutpennies,andaboutComeonPetunia,andaboutsugarandsand,andaboutmypaintbox?""Whathappenswiththeserecitations,historicities,circuitousextra-textsthat(dis)figurethe(con)text?Thereisakindofpileup;anexquisitecorpseleadingaprocessionofdancing,flip-floppingparen-theses(Greek:"aputtinginbeside").Theybegintotakeonsomethingotherthanabstractgrammaticalmarks-plierswithunseenhandleswiringthesyntaxwithshifting-vexesand-cavestrippingthegaitoftheeye;amassingpairsofuprightbowsdikingthescript.Brutemeta-phorssomehowwon'tdo.Theheapoflanguagestillseeps.Thepar-entheticalisbutameanderinglinethatwhisperswhatonehears,whichsideis(a)sideandwhichis(be)side? SiteRecite(aprologue)Nothingseemstohaveeverbeenmoved.Thereissome-thingofeverydescriptionwhichcanonlybeatrap.Maybeitallmovesproportionatelycancellingoutchangeestrangementofjudgement.No\tngeandtheanotherorderpervades.It'shappeningallatonce.I'mjustadisturbancewrappedUPmmyself,akindofghostvampiricallypassing\tghtheforestpassingthroughthetrees,\tthrowThesunwillriseandIwon'tknowwhattodowithit.Itsbeakwilltorturemeaswillitsslowmovement,themovementitinventedthatIcanonlyreiterate.Toomuchtimegoesbytotakeitbysurprise.Bodilysustenanceisnolongeranexcuse.ThequieterandstillerIbecome,theliveliereverythingelseseemstoget.ThelongerIwait,themorethelittledeathspileup.Avaguelanguagedrapeseverythingbutthewal-lswhatwalls?Theverywallsthatnevervary-myenclosure,sogloriousfromadistance,standsonthebrinklikeafour-leggedtable.\tofnothingWhatisit?Anislandwithaneverendingapproach?Astopgapfromwhentowher~e.Some-thingtohuddleoverwithmyelbowsliketrestleswithouttracks,thebasesofwhicharescatteredwithevidenceofunsolvedcrimes?Theoverallnessofitallsoaksthrough,runsthroughtheholesinmyhandsandcontinuestorunamok,overturningrocksthatshouldnotbeoverturned,breakingbreadthatshouldnotbebroken. Somuchremains.Nodoubtitcanallbecounted.Start-ingwithanyone,continuingonwithanyotheroneuntilallisaccountedfor,aconsensusisreached.Thatitcanallbeshelvedinallitsquantizedsplendor,thisthenistheturf.Thesesightings.Thisscenebeforememadeupofjustsomanyjustviews(nature'sconstituency)sitswithindif-ferencetothecentripetalvanishingpointthatmentalitypositssofalsely.Brain,mindingbusiness,incessantlycon-structsaninfiniteseriesofmakeshiftsdesignedtoperpet-uatethepicture-theonelikeallothersthatholdsitsbreathforathousandwords,converselyexhalespointzerozeroonepictures.Thisinsidiouswraparound,tiedtothenotion"Ihaveeyesinthebackofmyhead,"bindsmetomydouble,implodesmybeingtoamerewordasitwindstheworldaroundmymouth.Aseamlessscrollweavesmyviewbackintoplace-backtobackwithitself-theboomerangeffect,decapitatesanyandallhallucinationsleaving(loandbehold)thenakedeye,stalkingeachandeveryutter-ancethatbreaksandentersthedormitoriesofperception.Imustbecomeawarriorofself-consciousnessandmovemybodytomovemymindtomovethewordstomovemymouthtospinthespurofthemoment.Imaginingthebraincloserthanthe--eyes. It'sTimetoTurntherecordOver,wasthetitleofaproposedwork,'\t133afivechannel/screenvideoinstallationthatwoulddisplaysynchronousrecordingsofmyfeetandhands,madebyattachingfourcamerastomylimbs,andmyhead,recordedwithafifthcameraattachedtomytrunkandpositionedoutinfrontofmybodylookingbackatmyhead.Thescreensweretobeconfiguredasacross.Ineffect,[my]bodyfilmsitsownabsence,metaphoricallypinningornailingitsextremitiestothecrosswiththecamera's"objective"view,(dis)embod[ying]the"video"....Onlytheextremitiesofthebodyareseen,abodycrucifiedandimpassionedbythecamerasthathaveenteredit.loTheseparts,versions,shards,titles,de-scriptions,sutures,occlu-sions,excerptualreverberances,quotationsandalltheothergenericsimulacraoftextcitedabove,bledintoCrux."Duringthattime,thetextdevelopedmetaphoricallywiththelocationandprocessofmakingthework:thetopologyofthesite,ariverislandladenwithcastleruins;labyrinthinepaths,stairwaysandroomsthroughwhichthebodymightgainpassage;perceptualdiscovery;momentsofabandonmentandphysicalpainwerealltobearupon"scripting"thewalk.Eventheanecdotalseemedtoripplethetext:Itwasnearingdusk.Havingcompletedthelastwalk,wewerepreparingtoleavetheislandwhenalatefallstormcameinfromnowhere.Wewereleftwithaneither/ordecision:toleaveatthatmomentinhopesofreachingthemainlandbeforethestormworsened,orwaititout,hedgingitwouldonlybeasquall.Wetookourchanceswithmovementandpackedthecanoewithourgearandallthetapewehadrecorded.Bythetimeweenteredthewater,thewindhadworkedupamenacingbrewofcross-currentsandchoppywater.Takingthedriftintoaccount,weheadedforthesinglelacunainthemoatsurroundingtheisland.Ifwemissedit(whichfeltlikeagiven),therewastheriskofshipwreck-thehullwouldbetornopenbythedeadheadshiddenbythetide.Needlesstosay,wemadeit;bodies,equipment,tape,sedimentintact.CruxwaspremieredattheMuseumofContemporaryArtinLosAngeleswithwhatwasatthatpointthemostfabricatedversionofthe(textin)question.Itwasforegroundedintheworkasaspokenmonologue.IndescribingCrux,RaymondBellourwrote,"Thetextthataccompaniesthegaitofthisdisconnectedbodyisitselfa`blank'text...itisatextofdesperationandofwandering,closetosomeofthewritingsofthenouveauroman,andinparticulartothoseofBlanchot,whosedislocatinganddecenteringforceis[witnessed]....Fromthissolitarydestiny,thatinfactisn'tadestinyatallbecauseithasneitherbeginningnorend,theherobearsthecross,alone."12It 134\tisnotonlytheneitherbeginningnorendthatrearshere,butinastrangelyprescientway,the"blank"text.Bellourwrotethisnotknow-ingthatthetext(in)questionhadbeenre-movedfromtheworkpriortohiswriting.Hadheknown,howwouldBellourhavetreatedthiserasure?Or,asitseems,hadn'thedivulgedthesite?Wasthetextatemporarytool,ascriber,usedtodislodgetheimage(offlesh);toexcavatethesite(ofabsence);tobreakthespineofthebook?Istheabsentbodytheword/imagecrux?IsitFreud'smysticwritingpad,everyone'sdesire,everyones'death,zEros'waitstate?13Thecruxofthematter...AtalismanicdepressionleftoverfromPrimarilySpeaking?(Mymouthcouldn'tquitefitaroundthewords?)Sofar,thetracesofhistoricityhaveonlyreferredtothepublicdomainofthetext(inquestion).Whatofthatwhichhasbeenleftbehind;thesedimentthataccumulatesinfolds,files,discsandonionskin.Inthemarginsofonesuchscrap,Ihadcountedsyllablesfromselectedparts.Eachparthadthesamenumberofsyllables.Whatwasthisnumer-ologicalencryptingabout?Decodingmyowncode,theideawasakindofmobiusinterlocutorofspeechandwritingforvideotape.Asimilarnotionwasapplied,thoughsparingly,inHappenstance(partoneofmanyparts).14Thetextisfoldedonitself(textualrorschach);onepartisspoken,theutteranceofwhichdictatestheotherpartonthescreen,syllabically correspondingonetoone.Eachpartmindingtheother-logosfrog\t135andleapscriptfrayingtheplayofmeaning.Andthenthere'stheforthcoming,wherethe(textinquestion),en-titled,"AndIftheRightHandDidNotKnowWhattheLeftHandisDoing"istheleftsideofadoublesidedtextandthecolumnbetweenisameanderingcrack.'5Leftwiththeseunrelentingbeginningsandends-theunravelingsofdisembodiedtext(s)-its"prologue,"SiteReciteparonomasticallydisturbed,thereislittlerecoursebuttoenterthecurrentwork.SiteRecite(thevideotape)canbeseenasasinglereading/writingfroman"interactive"videodiscentitledWhichtree.16Imarkthiswordinteractivewithitstendencytoattractanoptimismofinfinitepossibilities,contrarytothefactthatitisnotonlydelimitedbyif/thenscenarios,butthoroughlycollapseswhentheviewerfindshis/herselfforcedtomakedecisionsinscribedby"multiplechoice."Tosubvertthistechnocraticillusionprescribedbyinteractivemedia,Whichtreeisanattempttocreateafieldofplaywhereinthemodusoperandiisoneofwandering,whereonemakeswaythroughamet-aphoricalwoodentangledinawebofreflexivity.Description:asinglelinescribbledonapagemakespointsofintersectionwherethelineoverlapsitself.Theselabyrinthineintersections(pointsof"interactiv-ity")theviewerwanders"through"areembeddedinthe"paths"ratherthanannouncedbysignposts.Neitherimagenortext(thescribbledline)breakupintomultipleplots,storiesornon-sequiturs(collage,montage,juxtapositions,cut-ups,etc.).Rather,bycontinuouspassagethroughsaidintersections,theviewer/writerunfoldsascenarioinrealtime.Nomatterwhichwayoneturns(wanders),thecameraobscuraand(spoken)textcontinueseamlessly,uninterruptedbyeditsorsyn-tacticalquirks.Theviewer/reader'sprimaryimpetustoengagetheworkisatypicallyotherthanseeing.She/heconjoinswithavoice"to(dis)cover"their"text(tracks)withinaself-reflexivementalterrainof(th)ree-(de)con-struction.Isaphenomenologicalexperienceofthinkingpossible?Tra-versingthefoldbetweenconsciousnessandself-consciousness,theviewerreadsashe/shewritesintheshadowsofpresence.Here,thelinear(author)ityoftext,meaning,originandsightbeginstoimplode.Theviewer/reader/writeriscontinuallythrownback(to)incitethetext.NOTESAllVideoworksbyGaryHill.DistributedbyElectronicArtsIntermix,NewYork. 136\t1.SiteRecite(aprologue),colorvideotape,stereo,1989(4minutes).2.IncidenceofCatastrophe,colorvideotape,stereo,1987-88(43:51min-utes).3.Videograms,excerptsfromVideogram2,b/wvideotape,1980-81(13:27minutes).4.GaryHill,"ProcessualVideo,"programnotes,VideoViewpoints,MuseumofModernArt,26February1980.5.ExcerptfromProcessualVideo,b/wvideotape,1980(11:13minutes).6.PrimarilySpeaking,existsasbothasingle-channelvideotapeandeight-channelvideoinstallation.Thetextwasclosertobeing"constructed"than"written."Iliterallysurroundedmyselfwiththecinerama-likescrollofhundredsofidiomaticexpressionsand"watched"themfalltogether,1981-83.7.GaryHill,Focus,ScanProgramnotes,VideoGalleryScan(Tokyo),April-May85.8.WhydoThingsGetinaMuddle?(ComeOnPetunia),colorvideotape,1984(33:09minutes).ThisworkwasbasedonthemetaloguebyGregoryBatesonpublishedinStepstoanEcologyofMind(NewYork:BallantineBooks,1972)3-8.Curiously,now,incomparingmyscriptnoteswiththeoriginaltext,itwasIwhohadperformedthismirroringofthetext.Theoriginalhasanadditional"pennies"attheend.(Also,ComeonPetuniareplacedDonaldintheoriginaltext.Thedaughterusedanagrams,OnceUponaTimeandOldDan,respectively,tomixupthefather'slogic.)9."VideoInstallations1983,"Afterimage11.8(Dec.83).Also,the"same"workforatimehadtheworkingtitle,"TheWriting'sontheWallandICan'tStopReadingIt."10.RobertMittenthal,"Video'sEvent:GaryHill'sCatastrophe,"Reflex3.6(1989).11.Crux,five-channelvideoinstallation,collectionoftheartist,1983-87.12.RaymondBellour,"VideoWriting,"trans.AlisonRowe.IncludedinIl-luminatingVideo(NewYork:AperturePress,1990)andoriginallyinaseparatearticle,"Ledernierhommeencroix,"Cinqpiecesavecvue,exhibitioncatalogue(Geneva:CentreGenevoisdeGravureContempo-raine,1987).13.Thewaitstateofacomputerworksinconjunctionwithitsspeed(inmegahertz).ThelowerthenumberthefastertheCPUcomputes.Azerowaitstatesuggeststhehypotheticalidealofnowaiting.14.Happenstance(partoneofmanyparts),b/wvideotape,stereosound,1982-83(6:47minutes).15.OneofacollectionofessaysinIlluminatingVideo. 16.Althoughtheimagesappearcontinuous(realtime),alldirectional\t137changes-leftandrightmovements,"in"and"out"focusing-areeditpointsthatjoinseparatelyrecordedimages.Allthesegmentswererecordedforaninteractivevideodiscproject,WhichTree(work-in-progress,1986-17.ThespokentextofWhichTreewillbeanelectroniccombineofamaleandfemalevoice.Unlikeasimplemix(chorus)ofthetwo,thesoundwillbeaharmonicweaveofthetwosourcesthatcanbedynamicallyweightedonewayortheotheratdifferentpointsinthelabyrinthinetext.