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Abstract
Littoral zones are geographies of constant movement between land and sea. The armchair traveller sits in the domestic space day-dreaming about places elsewhere. Both littoral zones and the armchair traveller share an amorphous position of moving between the loci of here and there. They operate as unformed, fluctuating spaces that reflect what academic Elisabeth Grosz terms as the space of in-between.
While Grosz discusses the space of in-between in relation to architecture, her idiom is used in this paper to examine other forms as well (forms being any manner of identities). As such, this research paper argues that engaging with littoral zones either physically, or as a daydreaming armchair traveller not only signifies the in-between but also encourages external perspectives upon forms. Subsequently, things that had seemed fixed or resolved, such as roles in the domestic environment, can be modified from a space external to them.
The difference between popular and unpopular littoral geographies is discussed, reasoning that atypical littoral zones are more adaptable to notions of unformed spaces. Several littoral narratives are also examined; 19th century French scenic wallpaper, the island-journey and the littoral-dominated films of John Sayles. Specific works of artist Simon Starling are used to illustrate a process of modifying and redirecting forms. The backyard will also be discussed as both a site of in-between and as a backdrop for photographic constructions.
It is the aim of this writer to use the abovementioned histories as a framework from which to consider the research and artworks supporting The MFA research. Ultimately, the aim of this paper is to argue that time spent imagining and engaging with atypical littoral geographies, is not to only gain an unfamiliar perspective, but to also to push upon and redirect things that had otherwise seemed resolved.