Speculation about Form and Element
in the principle of No-Form
by Hans Richter
Are the Square and the circle elements of pictorial language? And
if so,are there more elements than these two? For instance, as
Cézannemeant in his three dimensional way, the pyramid
(triangle), the cube (square),the cylinder (oval). What makes an
element elementary? Answer: its non-reduceabilityinto another form
except by breaking it up. Like prime numbers, for instance.But what
is the psychological significance of a form element? Is there
anattitude to a form element different to that to a composed form
element?To a composed form and rare form that attracts our
attention by being unusual?Do we look in the same way or is our
attention attracted in the same wayto elementary forms as to
composed ones? Or, in the terminology of my ownwork, is an
elementary form identical with no-form in contrast to a
compositeform which is, more or less, a natural, subjective,
invented one that appearsin nature? Is it not a fact that there are
two different categories? Isit not a fact that we do behave
differently both psychologically and emotionallyin the two cases?
We look at the square or the circle in one way and inanother at
special forms. Are square and circle not unspecial forms in
comparisonto all the others? If so, why? Is it because the
elementary forms do notappear in nature?
The answer to this sense of difference might lie within ourselves.
The squarehas a very direct relation to our body, inasmuch as it is
a balance betweenour uprightness and the soil, the earth we are
walking upon. This walkingand standing is, by itself, a balancing
act - one perceives this in children.In this way, the square may be
conceived of as not only a surface or spacebut as the expression of
a dynamical experience throughout our lives. Butit is, of course,
also a surface and a space, elementary housing: stoneupon stone,
wood upon wood, and on top a cover; a feeling of being at orin home
- covered, limited, protected against the non-I. I think this
kindof biological connotation including the esthetic one which
might have grownout of it, has something to do with our familiarity
with the square andwith it being somewhat outside what we call
form. The circle may go backto similar roots. Here's the first,
primitive housing-the cave- and evenmore, of course, the skies, the
sun, the moon. Round is identical with thesun and moon as THE
elementary-every-day experience. I experience theseconnotations as
an artist; not just the geometrical differences betweenforms, but
differences between natural forms and no-form. I experience
twocategories: One, elementary = no form, not forms created by man
but elements.Two, natural forms, including the geometrical
ones.
Our perception is regulated by our body and brain. We can neither
see norimagine forms other than those for which we are conditioned.
Theoretically,there might be innumerable other forms, but they are
outside human experience.The way we are constituted, the whole
scale of our form perception and sensationis related to our world,
and this world is all square and all round.
(Hans Richter by Hans Richter,
New York 1971, p 164)
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