Ostensibly a 20th century invention, the origins of camouflage appear in a deep-rooted past, where the figure of history disappears in its surroundings. The mimetic effect of camouflage can be glimpsed in a chameleon’s colourings, or heard in the tick tock soundings of onomatopoeic words. In this lecture, Patricia Lyons explores mimetic practices in order to draw out the complex entanglements that articulates the observer and the observed.
Dr. Patricia Lyons was the Research Leader in Fine Art at the Royal College of Art, where she oversaw the MPhil/Ph.D. programme and supports the development of staff research. Through the support of the Leverhulme Trust, she developed a three-month programme of lectures, seminars and workshops with the pioneering video artist Joan Jonas. Lyons often works alongside artists in her on-going research into the mediation of artistic practice. The resulting material takes the form of essays, lectures, recordings, drawings and photographic compositions. She developed a research project around drawing and recording with the artist Margarita Gluzberg. Lyons was the artistic director of the art and music label Love Howl Muse.
Adapted from bio published in 2013
Transcript available upon request
