Said the parents of Harm Van Der Dorpel while their son tried to explain his work to them.
If you make anything even the slightest bit conceptual, chances are you’ve heard this exact phrase, or something eerily close. The dividing line it places between maker (smart) and viewer (less so) completely starts things off wrong as it instantly constructs a barrier between the two. And unlike some barriers, this one is not particularly porous. By placing each other in different camps, we’re prematurely marking the other as well, the other. How can we even begin to think we’re going to break this barrier done? But are artists, crafters, makers, we do think it’s possible. Again and again and again.
Every so often you come across a project so magic, so perfect, so just, well, gorgeous that you want to savor it and take it in all on your own, letting your thoughts guide you through the piece before you discuss it with anyone else. (Or sometimes even have time to ruminate it over yourself, as you just want to take in what is first, before you try and dissect what was.)
How To Explain It To My Parents from Lernert & Sander on Vimeo.
Naomi says: