The Discussions

Conceptual artist Ian Wilson (1940, Durban, South Africa) has been interested in spoken language as an art form since 1968. At first, he described his own work as ‘oral communication’, and later on as ‘discussion’. At Wilson’s own request, his work is never recorded either as film or audio in order to preserve the transient nature of the spoken word. In 1976, at the invitation of former director Rudi Fuchs, Wilson visited the Van Abbemuseum for the first time. This was the first discussion by Ian Wilson within the context of a museum and it was purchased by the Van Abbemuseum in 1977. Until 1986, Wilson organised discussions at the Van Abbemuseum almost every year.
From monochrome to discussion
At first, Wilson’s artistic explorations took place entirely in the monochrome. He was absorbed by questions relating to perception and painting. This is aptly illustrated by the nameless object of fibreglass and white pigment (1967), which was recently purchased by the Van Abbemuseum. His last physical objects, ‘Circle on the Floor’ and ‘Circle on the Wall’, were created in early 1968. By making these works, Wilson realised that it was not necessary to make an object to visualise a concept. By letting go of material objects and continuing his artistic exploration in the realm of the spoken word, he was able to make the transition from visual abstraction to non-visual abstraction.
The publication
Wilson created a non-tangible art form, that only exists when the discussion is taking place, and lives on afterwards in the memories of the people that were present. The Van Abbemuseum posed the question if it would be possible to document his fleeting oeuvre. During a visit of Wilson to the Van Abbemuseum in 2006, the idea arose to make a catalogue raisonné, containing all of Wilson’s discussions from 1968 until 2008. Using documentation and the recollection of participants, the fleeting works have been catalogued by researcher Chantal Kleinmeulman. For this publication, American art historian Anne Rorimer wrote the essay ‘Ian Wilson – The Object of Thought’, placing the work of Wilson within the context of contemporaries such as Robert Barry, Joseph Kosuth, Lawrence Weiner and artists collective Art & Language.
In Ian Wilson The Discussions, every discussion is documented seperately. Factual information is supplemented with personal impressions of participants, including Rudi Fuchs, Daniel Buren, Lawrence Weiner, Michel Claura, René Denizot, Massimo Minini, Giuseppe Panza, Merrill Ryman, Christel & Urs Raussmüller, Sylvie Winckler, Oscar van den Boogaard and Luca Cerizza. Other works by Wilson are also addressed, including some of the ’statements’ that are related to his discussions and refer to the general idea of discussions. Ian Wilson The Discussions has been compiled as a source book to stimulate further research on Wilson’s works.
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