The Metallization of a Dream: Eduardo Paolozzi and the Independent Group, a case study in creative theory and practice for the digital age.

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The Context of the ResearchEduardo Paolozzi was not the subject of sustained academic attention during his lifetime. His only major retrospective was in 1971 at the Tate Gallery, which was not a critical success. The time is now ripe to look again at his work, which was and is provocative, crossing barrriers between printing, collage, sculpture, film and design. The conceptual frameworks offered by digital media and film making will enhance this re-evaulation. The Metallization of a Dream is the title of a collaborative project between the critic Lawrence Alloway and the artist Eduardo Paolozzi, which resulted in the publication of a limited edition, illustrated book in 1963. It dealt with many Independent Group obsessions, including new technology, popular culture, the relationship between body and machine and visual representation. The book's aesthetic is typical of Paolozzi's work of that time; it is chaotic, rough and non-sequential. This project is inspired by, and builds upon, these obsessions and aesthetic and will re-evalute the work of Paolozzi and the Independent Group using digital media. The Independent Group had met from 1952-55 at the I.C.A. in London. Although the Group met over only a short period of time, the influences and inspiration for their work represent a rich cross section of American and European sources from a comprehensive range of media. The diverse creative work and rich programme of discussions spanned architecture, design, popular culture and technology. The Group are conventionally regarded as 'The Fathers of Pop' (the title of an Arts Council film produced in 1979) and this project aims to destabalise that particular reading, by reconsidering Paolozzi as an exponent of l'Art Brut, a significant critical thinker and film maker. The possibilities offered by today's technology for interrogating the material will offer a fresh understanding of Eduardo Paolozzi and the Independent Group, and make a contribution to the digital history of art. Aims and ObjectivesThe main aim of the project is to offer a fresh understanding of the early life and work of Eduardo Paolozzi by means of a short, documentary film and conference paper. The film will be screened and the conference paper delivered at the Tate Modern conference, to be held on the 22nd and 23rd March 2007. As such, it represents a new departure for the Principal Investigator, who has conducted academic research on the Independent Group over the past twenty-five years, and now wishes to explore the possibilities of digital technology for re-evaluating the work of one of its leading creative practitioners. The Tate Modern conference will present the opportunity to stimulate debate amongst the research community and the broader public. It will advance knowledge and understanding about the work of Eduardo Paolozzi, both within his intellectual and creative context and the context of digital media. The second aim of the project is to lay the groundwork for a much larger scheme, focussing on the Independent Group beyond the 'Fathers of Pop' reading, to gather and store materials, provide signposts, support research and explain the significance of the Group today by means of a dedicated website. Potential Applications and BenefitsThe production of the film and presentation of the conference paper will stimulate academic debate and share knowledge and understanding of the work of Eduardo Paolozzi with a broader public. It will alert the audience to the work of Paolozzi and the Independent Group beyond the Pop Art paradigm, by introducing his extensive film work and range of references. The project will also enable the Principal Investigator to extend the limits of her research practice, acting as a case study for other researchers in the creative arts. The development of a web resource will also provide an up to date set of information about sources and current work on Paolozzi and the Group internationally.