Ceal Floyer Untitled Installation (Dotted Line), 1993-2022

Ceal Floyer's Untitled Installation (Dotted Line) can be displayed in and adapted to various exhibition contexts. The work is a site-specific installation that can be modified to fit different architectural settings and various exhibition displays. The installation consists of letraset transfer prints which are hand-applied along all architectural lines of the chosen space. The installation can vary in size, which makes it adaptable for one wall, a room, or an entire exhibition venue. For each edition of the work the letraset print pattern is re-done by the commissioner or owner of the installation.

The work creates a situation in which a discrete dotted line runs along the perimeter of an exhibition space lightly framing walls, door openings and windows of the gallery. The broken line resembles "cut-here" markings on a sheet of paper. It remains a hardly noticeable sign up until the moment when the visitor sees the device that shows a pair of scissors. The interrelation of these two elements; the markings of the "cut-here" line and the image of scissors, opens up a new perspective on the architectural space. Suddenly, the visitor can establish a relation between the two visual parts. The photographic image of scissors activates the unexplained dotted line running along the space. The line can now be read as a sign undermining stability and materiality of the architectural walls. The image of scissors also invites the viewer to return to the artwork (the line) and to reconsider it. In this way the installation also performs a "cut" in a time sequence.