What stops the eye from looking?

There are activities, symbols and natural blinders that subliminally pull the viewer along and past what is right in front of them. This has been studied in part through the invisible gorilla study or inattentional blindness ( Drew et al.) The viewer only sees what it is instructed to see. While symbols are often misconstrued even by “expert judgment”(Lerner & Collins).

Placarding Signs are used by code enforcement to signify to firefighters that a building is unsafe, or condemned, according to the city of Bangor’s website. The plaque or sign can only be removed when a certificate of occupancy is issued. The shape and form of the red-x relates to “+” and “x” in other public signs, labels, or flags emblematic of safety, help, love, religion, unsafe, trains, and more. “Placarding” carries a definition that is not ubiquitous outside of firefighting, and yet it catches the eye. Placarding as a word, refers to signs that are not made of paper, and are more substantial than a label. The etymology of placarding references plaques that have an official seal or authentication. However, the same word, Placard, references in french a cupboard or a closet without windows, and with storage.

Placarding Paintings speak to stories behind, as much as it speaks to the viewer’s assumption of what is being looked at. The painting is designed to stop the eye. The paintings intend to hold a middle ground space. The Placard Paintings make their debut in three public showings, the MFA’s Intermedia Studio Critique, Smalls Works Show 2022 at Gallery B. in Castine, Maine and Open Studio, the Intermedia yearly Open house. The rules in each setting will delineate the emblematic use of the paintings.

Group Show images are by Photographer Russell Kaye.

The images are from the Small Works Show 2022, at the the Gallery B. in Castine Maine.

References:

Drew, Trafton, Melissa L-H. Võ, and Jeremy M. Wolfe. "The invisible gorilla strikes again: Sustained inattentional blindness in expert observers." Psychological science 24.9 (2013): 1848-1853.

Lerner, Neil D., and Belinda L. Collins. "Evaluation of symbols for fire safety." Proceedings of the Human Factors Society Annual Meeting. Vol. 24. No. 1. Sage CA: Los Angeles, CA: SAGE Publications, 1980.

Placarding FAQ, City of Bangor, https://www.bangormaine.gov/filestorage/422/424/659/661/Placarding_FAQ.pdf

Placard https://www.etymonline.com/word/placard

Le placard, french https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/french-english/placard