My found object art is a kind of alchemy in which discarded, forgotten, rusty and dusty objects undergo a transformation, becoming integral design elements in my colláge constructions. These elements help me visually explore and capture abstract concepts or observations about the vital importance of connecting with the past. I feel the past is rich with cultural imagery and knowledge that can be sifted through to help understand the present. The representative objects of the past that come together in my art are simple, often domestic, items like spoons, feathers, bottles, rusted wire, or discolored cookbooks. The materials in my pieces could be likened to associations with the past: they can be as tenuous as paper ephemera and as substantial as metal; as color saturated as a glossy magazine,or as filmy as a piece of gauze.
The vintage imagery and 3-D objects I select for my art combine to create layered pieces that are a mixture of the unusual and the playful: part dream scape, part glimpse into the attic. My finished artwork speaks to the viewer on several levels: seeking beauty and meaning in the mundane; questioning notions of the ideal; recycling; exploring dream worlds; and reconnecting with the past.
I often use a box as a foundation for a piece. Boxes offer that built-in curiosity factor that appeals to human nature, prompting us to look and see what’s inside. The borders of a box can suggest safety or security, yet also hint at a troubling sense of confinement or restriction. I like to arrange elements within the box so they can break prescribed boundaries. I use layers of colors, images and objects to build up depth and texture, reinforcing my idea that there is always more beneath any surface.
The satisfaction of my art is in the oddly beautiful, multi-layered, and ambiguous scene that eventually comes together. The juxtaposition of unrelated objects transforms discarded items into a curious, thought-provoking tableau. |
