DOT DOT DOT DASH

A well-known Morse code rhythm from the Second World War period derives from Beethoven's Fifth Symphony, the opening phrase of which was regularly played at the beginning of BBC broadcasts. The timing of the notes corresponds to the Morse for "V"; di-di-di-dah and stood for "V for Victory" (as well as the Roman numeral for the number five). The V sign has various meanings, depending on the cultural context and how it is presented. It has been used to represent the letter “V” as in “victory". It is also used by people as an offensive gesture, and by many others simply to signal the number 2. Since the 1960s, when the “V sign” was widely adopted by the counterculture movement, it has come to be used as a symbol of peace. DOT DOT DOT DASH brings together work by five artists working across media whose individual enquiries deliberately tread a complex and polarized line in terms of subject, intention, and potential interpretation.

Jennifer Douglas’ recent paintings reference the found working environments of heavy and light industry and their equivalents within art history. Muted tones of industrial floor paint, all pervasive within the architectural modes of display that surround international contemporary art, create a tranquil and opaque surface on canvas. Douglas then repeatedly punctures and scratches the surface through sheets of carbon paper to make a constellation of marks that is both violent and painterly.