A brief outline concerning:

An Infinite Encyclopedia of the Body in Visual Art
Opus Corpus

The Opus Corpus {hereafter referred to as OC} is comprised of images of the human body spanning 24,000 years. The contents of the OC can be described as an ever expanding visual Encyclopedia which runs parallel to the ever fluctuating nature of the ‘visual representation’ of the human body –theoretically the OC would continue to grow till the extinction of man or of mankind as we know it.
{Note: the term ‘Visual Representation’ is used to define any mark or sign or manifestation upon a surface or within a space. The written word is excluded due to its problematic signifying nature which requires a divergent modus of approach}
In this context the Opus Corpus is also to an extent an historical and cartographic work, mapping and recording for posterity, various shifts in the visual representation of the body throughout history.
The concept of the Encyclopaedia Universalis as proposed in the 16th century as a compendium and repository of knowledge inspires the scope of the OC. Its organization required for the sake of comprehension a division into sections, subsections, themes and categorizations which can be dynamically cross referenced. This however does not suggest that there is a linear concordance; in fact the OC is filled with contradictions and divergent interpretations. This is necessary due to the intrinsically ephemeral nature of its subject. There is not one single perception of the body but many often erratic and polarized; a veritable chaosmos. The OC provides each individual the tools by which to construct their own private OC, welcoming subjectivity and the democratic preference of the individual.
Envision a world where a multitude of OC’s co-existed guided by one single factor: the mapping of the visual human body. If the OC would manifest itself physically, for instance a akin to a voluminous classical Encyclopedia then the OC’s could be circulated, appendixes added, amendments made, revisions and so forth within a democratic and egalitarian forum.
My personal OC, which I have been gathering, revising and structuring for some five years now, is a reflection of my own personal concerns, interests and taste.
For example I devote a large portion of my OC to the anatomic/medical/psychiatric body. Gathering disparate images from various sources such as art history books, medical manuals, historical tracts, I populate this particular ‘chapter’ of my OC with images that reflect my attitude towards a growing medical scrutiny of the body and how that has resulted in a form of subversive control.
The images illustrate my historical and sociological readings. The subjectivity is apparent.
In this context, when I presented my OC for Danslab on the 28th of June 2009, I used the term ‘Liquid Identity’ to ratify my OC. In other words by suggesting that at this present moment, at this specific time during my presentation, I wanted to utilize a modus of thought and perception which would raise my OC above the subjective in order to inspire and initiate in those present the desire to create their own OC. “Liquid Identity” which is closely linked to ideas of “Liquid Modernity”, provided a simple method of suggesting the continual fluctuation of not only the appearance of the body but also its potential meaning.
In conclusion the creation of an OC is a dynamic private and public activity which provides a working cartography of our physical presence; one that we often take for granted and are frequently at a loss in positioning it within the larger scope of human history.

Appendix

Suggested Further Reading/Viewing

1) 10,000 Years of Art , Phiadon Press, 2009,
ISBN: 978 0 7148 4969 0
2) How Art Made the World , Nigel Spivey BBC Books, 2005,
ISBN: 978 0 465 0818 3 {DVD also available}
3) The Body , Thames and Hudson, 1994,
ISBN: 0 500 27781 8
4) Eroticism , Georges Bataille Marion Boyars Press, 1987,
ISBN: 0 71452872 2
5) An Introduction to Visual Culture, Nicholas Mirzoeff, Routledge Press, 1999,
ISBN 0 415 15876 1
6) On Beauty, Umberto Eco, Secker & Walburg 2004,
ISBN: 9780436205170
7) On Ugliness, Umberto Eco, Harvill Secker 2007,
ISBN: 9781846551222