My fascination with creating started out in the form of arts & crafts projects when I was a young child and the interest grew as I did; I’ve been attracted to art in one way or another for as long as I can remember. Growing up, there was always a spot in my house that was dedicated to all the arts and crafts materials. The latest of these spaces was cleverly coined “The Craft Closet.”
The craft closet probably started out as a single drawer or maybe a box of some sort...somewhere where all of the "crafty" materials in the house could be kept all together. When I was younger I would investigate the contents of the craft drawer/box when I was bored to see if I could turn them into anything fantastic.
I am captivated by jewelry and decoration. As I explored my materials, I discovered that I could create my own things to define my personal space- a painting for my room, a bracelet for my wrist. I’m interested in the ways in which art can define us; what we choose to wear on our bodies, what we decide to display in our homes, and what we create for ourselves or for other people.
I have a tendency to pick things up and put them back down on a whim. I don’t necessarily always finish the pieces that I start. For this reason, I like things that can be worked on in stages or on the go- things that can be stashed away in a drawer with the possibility of being unearthed some time later with fresh potential- or things that may be completed over a short period of time so that I might move onto the next. My favorite pieces are probably the ones that can do either.
I’m interested in exploring the possibilities of what is already at hand. Pretty much anything that looks like it was or ever could be something of interest makes its way into an ever-evolving collection of everything from photographic images to fabrics, books, paints, beads, ribbons, pretty papers, plain papers, broken jewelry and anything in between. A lot of these items will probably never be turned into anything else. But I find myself holding on to them anyways because I can never be sure.
A project always begins with a general sift through the contents of the archive to see if there is anything that can be used to support whatever it is I’m working on. Sometimes I have an idea in mind and can search through the materials to see if anything fits the idea. Other times it’s the reverse, and the materials that I have on hand inspire the idea and a starting point is created that way. I use what I already have and seek to find what I don’t, and in that way my resources are constantly being altered and added to.
I’m currently curious about the functionality of jewelry. What it might be, or if it even has one. I am creating pieces that are designed with a specific purpose in mind, not to be only decoration for the body. If jewelry could serve a purpose, what would it be? Is jewelry, by definition, purely ornamental? If these objects become functional, do they cease to be jewelry?
As a whole, I view art as a form of expression and individuality. It is not something that can be explained in terms of wrong or right like math or language or science so it becomes particular not only to the person creating it, but also to the people that are interacting with it. The possibilities are infinite because the dynamics are altered with each person that encounters a certain piece of work. Art is something that doesn’t necessarily have boundaries because it doesn’t depend on words to define it, but rather individual experiences and points of view.
YES YES YES!!!
ReplyDeleteWell done!
I mean, c'mon, you won't ever admit it, but you have a highly philosophical relationship to your work. Sorry... you do.
I love the idea that a "work" or object is never complete. As an artist, your work is never done. That is what I get mostly from this statement. I really like how you say that you use what is around you... what is at hand. And since this is your method, it only makes perfect sense that your preference for something like an "archive" is so appropriate. That which is left over... that which has been supposedly completed and stored away... those things that people forget about... these are the things to which you give preference. And in your statement, I hear this: "there is never a single use for an item or thing. there is never a single way of looking at things. no object is inaccessible and no stone unturnable." This is a butchering of what you have written, I know.
So, I think a challenge is going to be exactly what you (sort of) ended your statement with: how to think about functionality? Especially considering your feelings about how art should work (which you summarize in the last paragraph)... how does FUNCTIONALITY potentially conflict with or complicate or lend itself with the idea of art as never really closing itself off? I feel like with the piece I saw today, you are exploring this question.
The tension present in the relationship between 'that which has a function' and 'that which has no final meaning or use' is something your art deals with very intelligently, perhaps without your even knowing it?
1 problem i have: i feel that this is simply too long. I feel like it can be condensed. The ideas are very elegant, and it is my opinion that this statement begs to be smaller... to 'say' itself in fewer words. (But I wouldn't want you to get rid of the story about the craft closet!)
Hope that helps.
This does help! I'm glad you could make some sense of it. Thank you!!
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