“Socrates loves philosophy but is mad about Phaedrus. So he seduces the young and handsome man under a tree with the words that matter most.” Back cover of Phaedrus Pron
Artist and writer Paul Chan transforms Phaedrus, the famous dialogue by Plato about love, madness, and the powers of the divine, into a relentless and absurdly funny exchange between two men searching for the right words to say the very wrong things.
Phaedrus Pron was written using a unique set of fonts created by Chan that turns letters, numbers, and grammatical marks into phrases and sentence fragments. Chan’s fonts instantly translate what you type into words that you did not intend to write. Each font embodies a different idiolect, expressing a different “voice” that echoes characters from literature, classical and modern poets, and contemporary public figures.
Works of art in themselves, the fonts extend the possibilities of writing by rewriting what is written with a simple change of font in your computer: from Times new roman to...Phaedrus Pron!
Internationally acclaimed artist Paul Chan lives and works in New York. His work has been exhibited widely in many international shows including: Making Worlds, 53rd Venice Biennale, 2009; Medium Religion, ZKM, Karlsruhe, 2008; Traces du sacrê, Centre Pompidou, Paris, 2008; 16th Biennale of Sydney, 2008; 10th International Istanbul Biennial, 2007; and Whitney Biennial, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, 2006. Recent solo exhibitions include: My laws are my whores, Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago, 2009; Paul Chan: Three Easy Pieces, Carpenter Center for the Visual Arts, Harvard University, Cambridge, 2008; Paul Chan: The 7 Lights, Serpentine Gallery, London, and New Museum, New York, 2007–2008; Paul Chan—Lights and Drawings, Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam. In 2007, Chan collaborated with the Classical Theatre of Harlem and Creative Time to produce a site-specific outdoor presentation of Samuel Beckett’s play Waiting for Godot in New Orleans. Chan’s essays and interviews have appeared in Artforum, Frieze, Flash Art, October, Tate etc, Parkett, Texte Zur Kunst, Bomb, and other magazines and journals.
