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The mixed media works and photographs I construct utilize imagery that references tropes of Western painting such as the picturesque landscape or color field, but my work starts with a desire to create pictures out of mundane materials and processes. I challenge myself to create rigorous systems of picture making in the absence of traditional art media. This humorous tension between the clichéd notions of beauty my images suggest and the ordinary, accessible materials that I use is a driving factor in the creation of my work.
The images in my Inktank series are vivid, painterly abstractions that at first glance may appear to be watercolors or poured paintings. They are actually photographs of fish tanks filled with water. Dropping colored inks into the tank and photographing their dispersion, I carefully constructed each composition. The edges of the tank are cropped and the final photographs printed onto watercolor paper in an attempt to hide any evidence of the images’ construction. My process is more transparent in Eye Wood, a series of intricate landscapes constructed solely out of wiggle eyes. Here, I meticulously applied these crafts-store emblems onto wooden surfaces with tweezers and glue, forming picturesque images of trees and rolling hills.
I take pleasure in the physical process of image making, be it the discovery of a more precise way to apply wiggle eyes or a new way to drip ink. No matter how complex the construction of my images, my goal is to maintain a spirit of playfulness in my work that resonates with the viewer.
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