ESTHETICS, PHYSICS (January 10, 2005)
I do not mind when people handle my boards. On the contrary, I like them turned around and moved about, which often happens when my house is full of people. That is one of the reasons why the boards are not attached to the wall but placed on narrow shelves or battens, which are themselves attached to the wall. And that is one of the reasons why the boards themselves are designed so as to weather well when handled. True, I often cringe when I see my boards turned upside down, or when they are poorly arranged in relation to each other. There is an order to my installations, albeit a subtle one. But I am outright annoyed—more, exasperated—when I see how little feeling people have for much more mundane things, such as the placement of boards on their battens. Here I am concerned with physics rather than esthetics. The battens are six centimeters wide, and I always place the boards, which are thirty centimeters tall and forty-three wide, so that their edges are flush with the outer edge of the battens. This way the boards are stable. They cannot fall down even if accidentally pushed. However, I often find boards that are placed a few centimeters closer to the wall, thus making them considerably less stable. On occasion I find a board or two pushed flat against the wall, thus making them most unstable. And I wonder how can people ostensibly so sensitive to esthetics be so utterly insensitive to physics?