I propose...

...creating a new international standard metre measurement. The international standard used to be represented as a bar (an alloy of iridium and platinum), held at the International Bureau of Weights and Measurements in Sevres, France. This standard was then replaced in the 1960s by a calculation based on the distance travelled by light in a prescribed time - a calculation designed to deliver the same measurement. 

For the new standard, I'll estimate what I think is a metre, then create a representation of it. This representation will be created out of a block of unstable material - this material could be fruit flavoured jelly, but made in a higher, thicker concentration than when its made for consumption. 

The block will be presented in a display cabinet set upon an unstable floor - such as loose floorboards or, if the exhibition space has a solid concrete floor, then the cabinet could be set upon a set of large flat boards which are laid over a number of uneven planks. Either way, the area of the unstable boards would be large enough to ensure that any viewer wanting closer inspection of the metre bar will cause small vibrations, effecting the stability of the bar.   

I may apply to the International Bureau of Weights and Measurements to have this standard recognised, and display the correspondence (my application in french, translated via an online english-to-french text converter; any response in english, translated in the same method) alongside the bar. Haven't decided this bit as yet. 

I propose...

...for the next show at the triangle space, having two title labels placed on the wall in close proximity to each other. Following the labelling style and convention used by the other exhibitors (assume the label is placed to the left of the work), the label on the left will have the following text on it: 

That is That.

Printed adhesive label, 2008.

Stuart Barnes

The label on the right will have the following text on it:

This is This.

Printed adhesive label, 2008.

Stuart Barnes

I propose...

...installing a 'yoghurt pot telephone' with one end inside the gallery and one end on the outside, for the next group show at the Triangle Space, Chelsea. 

The Triangle Space is, as it's name suggests, an awkward three sided building which is essentially one large room. You enter via a door in one side.

This piece would be installed through one of the other two walls, so that upon entering the gallery space the viewer would only see (in terms of my work) one pot seemingly stuck to the wall.

The installation will require drilling a hole (2 inches diameter) through the exterior wall, through which I can run a piece of string. Each end of the string will be attached to an empty pot (either a standard yoghurt pot, or an empty household paint pot - need to experiment). The string will be pulled taut when being installed so that each pot sits proud from the wall, and the pot will be the only thing immediately visible (the tied string would be visible inside the pot up close).*

Illustration of what's planned, with view through wall:

My intention is to try and create something which leaves the viewer unsure about what the piece of work is and what their relationship to it is. So, if it's not just dismissed as a pot (which is fine aswell in a way, as this would - hopefully - raise some doubt about 'why is there a pot stuck to a wall'), then the viewer will be able to deduce from looking closely that there's something else to it. Given that a 'yoghurt pot telephone' is a very common childhood experience, they should be able to work out that the piece is also a listening/speaking device and that the other receiver must be on the other side of the wall.

However, given that both ends of a 'y-p-t' are identical and perform the same functions, and given that the other end is never visible to them (being on the other side of the wall), the viewer should have no way of ascertaining for certain where they stand in relation to the work. Are they supposed to listen to something or are they being listened to - are they the subject in charge of interpretation of the work or are they simply a part of the work, an object being interpreted by someone else on the other side of the wall.

A further thought was to have the pots installed at slightly above head height, and have a small set of step ladders on either side of the wall to help them reach it. 

This should both encourage engagement with the piece (by suggesting there is something to investigate), but more importantly would mean that their 'performance' as part of the piece is made more obvious to other people within the gallery space. I'm wondering if this would make their potential as 'object' of the piece more acute for them when they realise the pot is a listening device. This addition to the idea was  prompted by Duchamp's 'Étant Donnés'.

The other art work being shown within the space (given it's a group show), and the reactions they elicit, would also become active parts of this piece.

* practical thought: to ensure that the string is allowed to vibrate properly, and prevent it from being obstructed by any debris occurring after the drilling, it may be best to insert a length of pipe through the hole and have the string inserted through the pipe.

I propose....

...building two motorcycle ramps - a take-off ramp and a landing ramp - and installing them in two separate venues. 

They would be positioned accurately in line with each other, but at such a distance apart that a jump would clearly not be feasible. One wouldn't be able to see both ramps at the same time from the same place, but be within reasonable walking distance of each other. For now, I am thinking they would both be installed inside different buildings - as feasible 'art' examples, at Madame Lillie's Gallery and the Gallery behind Stoke Newington Library. 

View Larger Map

The ramps would be built by me out of regular sized, shop bought, uniform wooden planks (uncut) and then painted in emulsion - red and white vertical stripes down the side panels, and a blue band with white stars running the along the incline/decline of the ramp. (It should be borne in mind that I am no handyman - it's likely to be very roughly built though I would make every effort to construct it to the best of my ability). 

The venues need more thought. There's more interest for me if they're not installed in galleries, and that possibly the space between them has some other significance. The advantage of the above mentioned venues though, is that their commonality (of location and of purpose) would allow the viewer to make the link and the trip between the two.