Work-in-Progress: Parting of the Sensory
May 04, 2010
I figure that the only way to follow a studio tour is to present a snapshot of new work. I’ve spent the past three months toiling away on a new body of work for my upcoming solo exhibition at Red Spider Studio. This exhibition is titled, Evolution of Fear, and it opens on May 22nd, 2010. I thought it would be fun to preview a selection of those works, and then discuss some of the concepts and ideas behind them. I intend to do this in a series of installments over the next two weeks leading up to the exhibition.
Parting of the Sensory
The first piece that we’ll explore is titled, Parting of the Sensory. This painting is a diptych done in acrylic and ink on two 30” X 40” canvases, (40″ X 60″ overall). I am experimenting with the diptych format because it permits me to work larger, and it makes the work easier to transport.
The image is built upon a web of overlapping matrices that each represent an aspect of fear and desire. These matrices were overlaid upon each other and the overlaps combined to create new matrices. These successive matrices were then further manipulated and entangled with other matrices, and the process was repeated several times. My goal was to create an overload of visual information that was codified and difficult to decipher.
The source imagery was taken from the web, and manipulated in order to subvert its original intent. The images of fear were derived from news stories on terrorism and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. The images of desire were clipped from advertisements featuring models and celebrities. My goal was not to recreate an actual likeness of the subjects, but to use the images as raw digital information that would serve as a point of departure.
The underlying composition reflects various facets of disposable culture. The combined elements explore relationships between the desensitization to violence, the glamorization of sex, an overtly sensationalized media, and an obsession with consumerism. My intent as an artist was to take this visual junk, with all of its negative connotations, and attempt to transform it into something positive.
My primary task was one of questioning and attempting to draw connections. This process is less about making a political statement, and more about using the activity of painting as a means to contemplate and reconcile larger problems. I’m not trying to make grandiose changes to the entire world, but rather to alter the snippets of my inner world, and take on challenges that I can tackle.
