First-word art vs. Last Word art: One is about exploration and the unexpected, the other is about accepting what has been done and respecting such through practice. I think of the first-word art as a practice that requires acceptance of risk, experimenting, problem-seeking, while the last-word art requires discipline, knowledge-seeking, and respect to culture and legacy.
In my practice, I find it important to be exploring in both ways by experimenting constantly whether it be through concepts or materials, and also find it important that I know where these ideas may have originated and understood the culture and past usages of the materials I am interested in. The main point that stuck with me in Naimark’s article, “First Word/Last Word Art” is the struggle of finding the permanent in-between with these two spectrums especially in the qualities of real-time. There is no doubt that technology is constantly evolving and as creators, we become very aware of how it affects the durability or importance of the things we make as time passes by.