Silence in Space: When Silence Becomes a Tool for Artistic Expression

Abstract

Through a comparative reading of selected visual and performance works, ranging from Edvard Munch’s Silent Scream and Kazimir Malevich’s Suprematism to Samuel Beckett’s dramaturgy and Marina Abramović’s performances, the study demonstrates how silence becomes a minimalist device and a philosophical stance as well as a social stance. These examples highlight its role in reshaping artistic language, audience reception, and the ontology of art itself. Silence is thus approached as a horizon of potentiality where concealment and revelation intersect, enabling forms of communication that exceed the limits of speech. In this sense, silence functions as an aesthetic and existential presence that turns the absence of expression into a revolutionary protest across different artistic forms. Methodologically, the research combines analysis, deduction, and comparative critique, situating silence within contemporary debates on aesthetics and semiotics, while also addressing its social and revolutionary dimensions. The findings suggest that silence, in its multiple manifestations, emerges as a powerful tool of artistic expression, often more eloquent than words.