When attempting to understand the fourth dimension you must realize it is a space that man has never entered. Our world is based upon three dimensions. In order to overcome the barriers of the dimension we live in and enter into the fourth dimension we must be able to travel through any matter, energy, space, and time. An example would be traveling through a solid wall or being able to put your hand through another body. However in our present reality this is impossible. We know no way to make our bodies disappear and there is no way we can move faster than the speed of light. The only moments we get traces of the fourth dimension is from death and while we are asleep dreaming. This is why I chose to curate the revolutionary art of Kazimir Malevich, Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, and contemporary artist David Hockney. They all show examples of an artist attempting to realize the fourth dimension on a two dimensional plane. Laying these thoughts out and understanding them in a medium that everyday people can relate to.
Choosing Cubist art was relatively easy as I found while analyzing it, a constant reflection upon reflection of shapes. I noticed multiples views that reminded me of a person looking through glass. I also realized the overlapping of passages and planes. That is when I understood the appearance of the fourth dimensional world. The fourth dimensional world would appear as a constant shifting of spaces that at times were completely invisible and then when you moved to get a closer look it would appear entirely solid. I noticed when looking at Portrait of Ambrose Vollard that he appears to be slowly dissolving into different shapes or planes and this reminded me of perhaps the image one would get as a man is dying and you see his essence leave his body. There was energy and emotions rather than just a body, I related this to the rule that a body, physically could not exists in the fourth dimension. I knew that Analytical Cubism was attempting to analyze not the perceptions of a man but a universe that did exist where one could see simultaneity.
I had a feeling that I could not understand Kazimir Malevich’s Black on White just by first glance. This is because of the very obvious fact that we live in a very objective world. In the 21st century people cannot let go of their objects and symbolism. It takes a very strong person in these times to disconnect from all electronics. Could you imagine asking a person to disconnect from the objective world? I truly felt that after looking at Black on White, Malevich wanted the viewer to let go and completely immerse themselves in a world of black. Where the only thing left for you is your mind, the reflection of who you are. I don’t think I could have full realized this until I read Malevich’s Suprematist Manifesto. This is the first time I really realized that as an artist he was really beyond his times. Discovering an idea that is very much significant to the material world we live in. When looking at White on White I felt the fourth dimensional ideas reappear. This was very much aligned to the idea that space would lay within space, endlessly. That cool space may overlap warm space as shown by the tints added to the white spaces.
Finally a long time ago I had read a book about David Hockney’s photography and realized how much it was a modern interpretation of Cubism. Hockney used modern technology to his advantage he composed simultaneity with real images. His use of real time stamped images of a women in Nude (Teresa Russell) was an amazing way to show an even closer look at fourth dimensional reality. It was the missing link to the exhibition. It made this entire concept “real” not just something drawn up or written out. His use of photography creates a visual language that a younger generation can relate to and understand.
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