Liquid Crystal and The Art of Spinning

LIQUID CRYSTAL AND THE ART OF SPINNING
By Marie-Louise Blaney
Lissadell Woods, Co. Sligo, 2020
Sitting on the woodland floor, I quickly twirl a fidget spinner i and peering through its
spindles, I try to capture an altered view of the woods around me.
As the spinner moves through its 360º rotation nothing much shifts in its chromatic field
of vision. It stills the mind though; enough to hear a collage of sounds emanate from the
woods, throwing me into an upside down - where tones and textures of tightly pitched
sylvan chords reveal an unspoken alliance between these primary elements. I angle the
spinner sideways and twirl again, once more, and as it slows; it subtly captures a fractured
vision, a sliding kaleidoscope of greens, raw umber and French grey - pale as an April
sky. I spin it again, this time more slowly and I think of how crystals fracture light and
colour. And if this field of vision was viewed through a liquid crystal screen ii , where
colours are scrambled, I wonder which wavelengths of green, raw umber and grey would
make it through.
Polarisation of colour and light is what excited the early Cubists, who painted and
experimented with the interplay of these visual elements. In April 1904, Cézanne wrote
a letter to his friend Émile Bernard saying that to “interpret nature in terms of the cylinder,
the sphere, the cone; put everything in perspective.” This new reality, both terrifying and
beautiful, radically altered the essential nature of things. Shaped by new ideas in science,
metaphysics and philosophy, artists embraced this radical wave, creating increasingly
abstract works of art. The high point of this time was the 1910s and its epicentre was

Paris. Maurice Raynal, a French poet, coined the term Crystal Cubism to refer to this
new Parisian phenomenon, whose magnetic ability attracted young and aspiring artists
and writers from all over the world. A new artistic bohemia grew up in the city, where
creative expression and new ideas flourished. For visual artists, ideas in metaphysics
created a profound shift in painting and sculpture as the appearance of objects to the
naked eye was not as it seemed. The idea of a crystal, with its flattened planes and
geometric structure became the perfect metaphor for the shape of things to come.
It was in this world that young Mary Swanzy found her feet. Born in 1882 in Dublin,
she was the daughter of an ophthalmic surgeon, a profession also intrigued by the impact
of light and colour on the human eye. From an early age Swanzy was drawing and
painting and at the age of fifteen, travelled to Europe to study in Versailles and Freiburg;
before returning to Ireland to continue her artistic training at the RHA in Dublin. Her
mentors included Nathaniel Hone, Walter Osborne, John B. Yeats and May Manning.
Having travelled herself to study in Paris, Manning encouraged the young Swanzy to live
in Paris, where she became immersed in the new artistic bohemia of artists, poets and
writers. The artistic and experimental styles Swanzy was exposed to, as well as the
creative circles she frequented had a profound and life-long influence on her work. She
painted in the new Cubist style and took classes at some of the most famous art studios
in Paris, amongst them the studio of La Grande Chaumiere as well as the Colarossi.
Her greatest influences came from Cézanne, Picasso, Juan Gris and the Fauvist painter
Marc Chagall, whose works she encountered in the collection of Gertrude Stein. On
returning to Ireland, she was encouraged to return to painting portraits, but she
continued to paint in the modern style, drawing on the strong cubist and fauvist
techniques she learnt in Paris.
A small painting by Swanzy continues to intrigue me. An abstracted image of trees, it is a
little gem in The Niland Collection, a unique collection of twentieth century Irish Art. iii
Mary Swanzy, Abstract, oil on board, c. 1910

Possibly painted in St. Tropez in the South of France, around the 1910s, it’s hidden
secrets of woodland charm unfold in geometric planes of light and colour - with different
shades of green, raw umber, burnt orange and French blue.
I spin the spinner one final time and settle deeper into myself. I think of Lady Sei
Shonagon, a courtly lady of the old imperial Japanese Court. She made intriguing lists of
things that quicken the heart, such as sparrows feeding their young; the sound of
raindrops which the wind blows against the shutters; noticing that one’s elegant Chinese
mirror has become a little cloudy; and not to mention washing ones hair, put on perfume
and scented roses even if not a soul sees one - these preparations still produce an inner
pleasure. iv
I close my eyes again and think of liquid crystal, a murky substance which when heated
turns clear…. and, when cooled turns to a full crystal solid.
It’s not long now before we find our feet again, not long.
Endnotes –
i
Fidget Spinner – love them or hate them, the spinning toy phenomenon became the newest toy
craze in 2017 amongst school children the world over. Invented by Jennifer Calfas, it was more
than just a toy for kids and became a ‘must-have’ office and boardroom accessory.
ii An LCD screen blocks polarised light when off, but reflects red, green, or blue light when
activated. If you put liquid crystals between polarisers you can use the crystals properties to reorient
the polarisation of light. George Heilmeier created the first liquid crystal display screen in
1968.
iii
The Niland Collection is one of the most notable public art collections of twentieth century
Irish Art, with important works by Mainie Jellet, Mary Swanzy and Evie Hone. These women
artists were the most important protagonists of the Avant-Garde movement in Ireland and their
Cubist paintings caused shockwaves in the 1920s art scene in Dublin. The Model is home to The
Niland Collection and is located in Sligo, Ireland. https://www.themodel.ie/art-and-artists/theniland-collection/
iv
In the Japanese Imperial Court during the tenth century, it was common for courtesans to
keep notes or a diary in a wooden pillow with a drawer. The pillow book of the courtesan Lady
Sei Shonagon was a diary of her experiences in the palace of Empress Teishi. She made lists of
rare things, amongst those a list of seven things that quicken the heart, four of which are included
in this essay.
Marie-Louise Blaney, 2020