Drawing a Blank: Howard Hollands

I came across an "engage International Conference" while looking for essays on blankness. 'Like Nothing Else: experiment, risk and gallery education'
16 - 19 November 2005

One of the speakers at this conference was Howard Hollands:

Drawing a Blank: picturing silence in the classroom and gallery
'this interpretation panel is intentionally blank'
So, what 'this interpretation panel is intentionally blank', really means is, 'don't worry, this interpretation panel is intentionally blank', as a means of allaying the anxiety generated by the visitor faced with what appears to be nothing on the gallery wall. This throws us back on ourselves as a reader-viewer of images. Art is what we make of it, and 'nothing' as 'something' remains a confrontational and challenging concept. The nature of nothing means that it can never become an orthodoxy, but what we say about it certainly can. In this (blank-blanc) paper with too many words and pictures, Howard explores the empty space of the gallery and classroom as overflowing with pedagogic possibility

Unfortunately I could not find a transcript of his presentation (probably because it is blank?), however, attached was a link to his references which might be helpful. What striked me was the line: So, what 'this interpretation panel is intentionally blank', really means is, 'don't worry, this interpretation panel is intentionally blank', as a means of allaying the anxiety generated by the visitor faced with what appears to be nothing on the gallery wall.

The use of the word "anxiety" reminded me of my own. I never considered that an audience might also experience the same fear as myself. Yet again, I realise how incredibly self obsessed I have become. I really need to stop taking assumptions and turning them into truths/truthes? (For some reason I've drawn a blank on it's spelling - ha, hilarious...I am not.)

I wonder if I contacted him directly, if he might let me look at his transcript if it even exists? Hmm...