“Alex AG (Alex Garber) liberated the sense of touch from the dictate of the vision, as if the sense considered “inferior” rebelled against the “upper” sense – the vision. The discovery of the young artist was provoked by the life circumstances, where he was aiming to restore the artistic experiences to his close friend and fellow artist, who suddenly was deprived of sight.”
Excerpt from “Tactylism of Alex AG”
By Aleksandra Shatskikh, Doctor of Art History
Read the article
ALEX AG TACTILE SCULPTURE
The tactile sculpture is more than just a new media. It’s possibly the entire new direction of art, focusing on the most abstract and primal sense – the sense of touch. It’s not accidental that the visual form of AG’s sculpture is inspired by Neolithic aesthetics. Past encounters with archeology allowed AG to experience firsthand the sensation of an object, created millennia ago.
Tactile sculptures are objects, meant to be experienced, while held by hand. The entire surface of the object is carefully crafted to tell the story to the fingers: the mirror-like smoothness, combined with virgin stone roughness, the Hellenistic polish and patterns formed from microscopic scratches blend into a unified experience.
The sensation induced by tactile sculptures is a combination of complex surface finish with the composition of simple figurative form, created mostly as a direction for the fingers travelling the surface and intentionally shaped for the prevalence of the tactile composition over visual. The process of finishing the surface is more laborious than carving the actual sculpture’s shape. The visual form of the sculptures is meant for observation from the eye level and from all directions.
HOW DO THEY WORK?
HOW DO THEY WORK?The tactile sculptures are created to be a personal item, owned and enjoyed by a single individual. They all are sized for being an easy-to-carry object, accompanying its owner on a regular basis. Holding and handling them has a calming effect and helps the thought process. The sculptures are created to have a very small chance of being broken even if dropped. While one may choose the sculpture based on its appearance, it’s suggested by AG to focus on how the object feels first. Nevertheless, the tactile sculptures collection includes a large variety of forms, mostly based on various animal shapes. Due to their nature, tactile sculptures are the most personal form of art objects in existence. Not only they are not designed for a public exhibitions, their shape also is so intimately connected to the feel of the surface that even their appearance cannot be adequately reproduced by the means of photography or video.
Below Are Few Examples of Tactile Sculpture
While the visual of the pieces is at most secondary for the form of art focused on the sense of touch, Alex AG is often asked what these pieces look like. To satisfy this curiosity we provide several examples of the actual pieces in the gallery below.
SPIRITUAL COMPONENT
Besides the obvious tactile pleasure and calming properties, these sculptures are objects of spiritual content, connected to the concept of a personal totem. These sculptures are created by AG as empty vessels, designed to build over time a link with the person, who owns them and attuned specifically to the owner’s energy and needs. As such, the tactile sculptures are capable of storing energy and releasing it, when needed. Their purpose may be shaped for a specific goal by the owner: for instance, to promoting inner balance, improving interactions with others or protecting from the negative influences.
This form of art is meant to touch the most original and pure parts of one’s personality and become much more than a collectible art: a companion, a tool, a constant reminder of beauty and balance in the Universe.
RECENT PAST EVENT:
Spoken Through Touch:
ONE DAY ON DISPLAY IN MANHATTAN
Thursday, February 9th, 2023
:: 6PM-9PM
Upsilon Gallery
23 East 67 Street, 3rd Floor, New York, NY 10065 map
347.685.9470
This Thursday’s event will be an official introduction of tactylism to New Yorkers. It is a one evening opportunity to experience an occurrence that have never happened in the art history: the art media for a different sense – the sense of touch.
Tactile sculpture is a completely new direction in art, focusing on the most abstract and primal sense – the sense of touch. The visual form of AG’s sculpture is inspired by Neolithic aesthetics, informed by the artist’s encounters with archeology.
Tactile sculptures are objects to be experienced while held in hand. The entire surface of the object is carefully crafted to tell the story read with fingers. The sensation induced by tactile sculptures is a combination of complex surface finish with the composition of simple figurative form, created as a direction for the fingers travelling the surface and intentionally shaped for the prevalence of the tactile composition over visual. The process of finishing the surface is more laborious than carving the actual sculpture’s shape.
Tactile sculptures are meant to be a personal item, owned and enjoyed by a single individual. They all are sized for being an easy-to-carry object, accompanying its owner. Holding and handling them has a calming effect and helps in mindfulness practice. The sculptures are created to be exceptionally sturdy and are unlikely to break if dropped. While one may choose the sculpture based on its appearance, the artist invites you to focus on the way the object feels. Visually, the tactile sculptures collection includes a large variety of forms based on various animal and human shapes. Due to their nature, tactile sculptures are the most personal form of art objects in existence. Not only they are not designed for a public exhibitions, their shape also is so intimately connected to the feel of the surface that even their appearance cannot be adequately reproduced by the means of photography or video.
This is why attending the event in person is a rare opportunity to experience these objects the way they are meant to be experienced.
