WANG, 1986

J. O. Mallander

Annika Gunnarsson: You now stand before more than four metres of paper and the remnants of a piece of charcoal, which has been spun around its own axis over and over again.

Sometimes, drawing can serve as a ritual, a way of contemplating the nature of the world.

Through meditation the world becomes real on all levels. Sometimes drawing serves as a method of exploring inner and outer realities.

By repeating the same movement across the whole sheet of paper, the piece of charcoal in J.O. Mallander’s hand has left traces of an action that combines a spiritual dimension with analytical documentation.

The artist J. O. Mallander’s drawing “WANG” has been described as one long continuous drawing, which from a Zen Buddhist perspective could also be perceived as non-art, something that is not linked to any aesthetic system.

According to J. O. Mallander, the drawing process itself can start as a mistake when viewed from other logical perspectives. However, by recognising what has happened and following it through, it becomes one of the things that adds value.

J. O. Mallander has said: “I probably strive for a certain perfection, but it will always be relative. That is good enough for me.”