Conceptual Art: A Critical Anthology - uncopy

the visual evidence that they do meet at the point where they intersect on the horizon line (the
“vanishing point” or “infinity” of perspective). Out of his investigations of “visual” (as opposed
to “tactile”) geometry came the field of projective geometry. Projective geometry investigates
such problems as the means of projecting figures from the surface of three-dimensional objects
to two-dimensional planes. It has led to the solution of some of the problems in mapmaking.
Maps are highly abstract systems, but since distortion of some sort must occur in the transformation
from three to two dimensions, maps are never completely accurate. To compensate for
distortion, various systems have been devised. On a topographical map, for example, the lines
indicating levels (contour lines) run through points which represent physical points on the
surface mapped so that an isomorphic relation can be established. Parallels of latitude, isobars,
isothermal lines and other grid coordinate denotations, all serialized, are further cases of the
application of external structure systems to order the unordered.
Another serial aspect of mapmaking is a hypothesis in topology about color. It states that
with only four colors all the countries on any map can be differentiated without any color
having to appear adjacent to itself. (One wonders what the results might look like if all the
paintings in the history of art were repainted to conform to the conditions of this hypothesis.)
(. . .)
This text was published in Artforum, 6:4 (December 1967), pp. 28–33.
mel bochner the serial attitude 27