Triptych: Reading, Thinking, Writing:

The Triptych as a Fundamental Process of Contemporary Art
In the field of contemporary art, the triptych "Reading, Thinking, Writing" goes beyond a simple sequence of actions to become a central philosophical concept. It describes a dynamic and cyclical process through which the artist and the viewer engage with the world and the work of art. This triad shifts the focus from the finished art object to the intellectual approach and the production of meaning. The artwork is no longer merely an aesthetic end, but a device that activates or embodies this process.

I. Reading: The Act of Reception and Deconstruction
Philosophically, reading is not a passive act of absorbing information. It is an active interpretation, a hermeneutic. Inspired by thinkers such as Roland Barthes ("The Death of the Author") or Jacques Derrida (deconstruction), the act of reading is a way to uncover the structures, codes, unspoken elements, and intertextualities that compose a "text," whether literary, visual, or social.
In contemporary art, "Reading" translates in several ways:

1. Reading the artwork: The viewer is invited to decode the work as a language. They read the signs, symbols, references to art history, politics, and popular culture. Joseph Kosuth's work One and Three Chairs (1965), which presents a chair, its photograph, and its dictionary definition, is a direct call to read the different regimes of representation.

2. Reading the world: The artist is above all a reader of the surrounding world. They read archives (like Anselm Kiefer), information flows, urban landscapes, social structures. This reading is the raw material for their thinking.

3. The integration of text: Many artists, from Jenny Holzer to Lawrence Weiner, integrate text directly into their works. The word is no longer just a caption; it is the artwork. The viewer is forced to shift from a mode of visual contemplation to a mode of literal reading, and thus, of interpretation.

II. Thinking: The Space of Conceptualization and Critique
"Thinking" is the central pivot, the moment of digestion, critique, and conceptualization. It is the mental space where "read" information is analyzed, connected, questioned, and transformed into an idea or intention. Philosophically, this refers to Cartesian doubt, Kantian critique, or Hegelian dialectics: a process of reflection leading to new understanding.
In contemporary art, "Thinking" is the heart of conceptual art:

1. The primacy of the idea: As Sol LeWitt said, "the idea becomes a machine that makes the art." The material execution of the work is secondary to the concept that underlies it. The thought, the approach, is the work itself.

2. Art as research: Many contemporary practices resemble research ("research-based art"). The artist thinks like an investigator, philosopher, or sociologist. Collectives like Forensic Architecture use investigative methods to think about and expose complex realities.

3. Provoking the viewer’s thought: The work is not there to give answers, but to pose questions. It is an "object to think with," a catalyst that activates the public’s critical reflection on aesthetic, ethical, or political subjects. Ambiguity, paradox, and incompleteness are strategies used to stimulate this thinking.

III. Writing: The Materialization and Inscription of Thought
"Writing," in this context, goes far beyond the act of tracing letters. It is the act of giving form, materializing thought, leaving a trace, inscribing oneself in the world. For Derrida, writing is that original inscription that even precedes speech. It is an action that structures reality and makes it communicable.
In contemporary art, "Writing" is the act of plastic and semantic production:

1. Giving form to the idea: Whether through an installation, a performance, a video, or a painting, the act of creating is a form of writing. The artist writes with materials, spaces, bodies, sounds. They translate a concept (the thought) into a sensory form (the work).

2. Text as performance: The act of writing can become a performance in itself. The artist stages themselves writing, turning the process into a spectacle, as in certain works by Hanne Darboven or Sophie Calle where protocol and written narration are central to their practice.

3. Writing one’s own narrative: The artist writes their place in art history. The wall label, the status of artist, the title of the work are acts of writing that guide the reading of their work and position it within an intellectual field.

Conclusion: A Cyclical Conception
The philosophical concept of "Reading, Thinking, Writing" defines contemporary art not as a production of decorative objects, but as an intellectual and critical practice. These three actions are not linear but form a continuous feedback loop:
• The artist reads the world, which feeds their thinking.
• They think to develop a concept, which they write in the form of a work.
• This work is then given to the viewer to read, who in turn thinks and “rewrites” the work through interpretation.
• This new interpretation reintegrates into the cultural field, becoming a new text for other artists to read.

The contemporary artwork, conceived through this lens, is a space of dialogue, an interface where the acts of reading, reflection, and inscription meet and generate infinite meanings. It is less a statement than an ongoing conversation.

Tribute to Van Gogh:
"Portrait of Alexander Reid"
in the Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art collection

Hybrid digital version:
2160 x 3840 px / 4K MP4 / 116 MB / 8 fps / 1/1 edition on @objktcom