GAC senior art show “Kaleidoscope”

“Here” series

“Here” series

“Here” series

Angel I

Angel II

Angel III

Angel IV

To Every Corner

“Kaleidoscope” Senior Art Show 2009

Ha! Here finally is my work from the senior show “Kaleidoscope.”

Now, just as a note, some of these photos are not as high-quality as I would like. “To Every Corner” will be re-shot soon, but I just thought for the sake of convenience I would add it here with its comrades. So, once again, I will update the photos with better versions soon.

Additionally, “Angel III” and “Angel IV” were not actually in the show, but they were made to go as a series with “Angel I” and “Angel II” so they are posted here with their fellows.

And finally, my artist statement for the show,

“Within the past year my paintings have started to reflect my interest in memory, age, relationships and loss. In painting I’ve begun to purposefully exploit the processes of time and aging, leaning towards aspects of dilapidation with the hopes of taking the viewer into their own memory.

In the past, the themes of time and memory reflected in my work were impersonal, removed from myself; resolved through portraits of people I didn’t know. From there I’ve started to consider personal relationships and to delve into the history of people I’m related to but whom I don’t remember or have never met. This is an aspect of memory I’m continuing to explore.

The paintings express an aspect of atmosphere and mood as I’ve begun to explore emotional depth. Colors and contrast are muted as I try to capture the effect of time and evoke a sense of forgotten memories and all-but-unknown experiences. A limited color palette using shades of ochre and umber allow for this subdued sense and a presence of age. The use of varnishes to manipulate cracking also contributes to the effect — the product of aging. Text appears in some of the work to mingle with the subjects and concepts, as in some pieces it outlines a time from the past, and in another words are faded and obscure to impart ambiguity.

These ideas stem somewhat from a response to history: that we find beauty and inspiration in the archaic, through the crumbling remains of another’s work. Time inevitably has an effect on everything; we can find it unnerving, but we can also find it sublime.”