My
artwork captures the physical evidence of human history in my own community of
St. Mary's County, Maryland. Ideas of where we live and our communities past
are represented by transforming found objects and photographs into sculptural
instillations that evoke the presence of abandoned homes.
My process involves photographing an object or space in an abandoned area
that has a lot of destruction and/or chaos to it, while making sure to capture
the absence of human involvement that resided before the destruction took
place. I then take these photographs and combine them with found objects, which
are usually assumed to be trash or waste. The items include chairs, wallpaper,
dirt, personal documents, desks and other household items. I set up these
objects in a room that represents a compilation of abandoned sites that I’ve
traveled to over the past year.
The act of collecting these objects and integrating them with photographs of
the areas they were found in allows me to force the viewer into having a
physicalized experience that makes them question their own location and space,
and wonder what exactly happened to the environment they currently stand in.
From these elements I can create a large-scale instillation of multiple layered
objects and photographs that embody the history and presence in areas that seem
to be devoid of any human life.
By combining found objects with photographs of abandoned homes and areas into full-scale
instillations I can express my personal struggle towards the unknown answer of
what exactly happened to these destructed environments.
I
wanted to also include the notes that I took while writing this statement. It
shows some of the questions and thought processes that I went through to come
up with my final statement.
·
What am I interested in?
I’m interested in exploring the aspects
of space, unrecognized social issues that affect this county, spacial
experiences—sensory experience (want the viewer to feel as if they are actually
walking into this real space) (feelings of scared, pressure to do something
about it—guilt, makes them curious about history of place, what happened?)
·
What do I want to communicate?
I want to communicate that areas like
these exist in their world, right in their own towns. Want people to question
what happened to cause the current areas destruction)
·
What is the subject and/or content of your work? In other words,
what is it about?
My current work is about abandoned
homes and houses in st.mary’s county, Maryland. From the instillation, I want
people to feel as if they’re walking into an area that’s still alive( by the
ghosts and spirits of the place) I want them to feel spooked because of the
negative history that MAY have occurred) Sparking people’s interest in the
history of their own counties.
·
What kinds of things inform your work? This can include other
artwork, politics or society, and your own experiences.
Walking into abandoned homes since I
was a teenager sparked my interest in figuring out the history of these places.
Running into owners of properties and hearing stories of their past relatives
who’ve lived there. Going to the American Art Museum and seeing Edward Kienholz
work of “sollie” made me feel like I was back in that hotel, and made me wonder
what happened to the old man in the room, if he was ok or still alive. The
exhibit made me question social issues of abandoneness in my own
community---how many areas are there like this in st. mary’s county?
·
What materials do you use and why?
Photography is my prime tool, because
capturing the real, physical evidence of people’s lives has brought about
emotions in people, and myself. Using real life objects, found objects, or
photographs of them, makes the viewer feel as if they’re in that person’s
shoes, allows them to question that person’s life and past---may push them to
want to do something about it.
·
What is your process and how does it affect the way you work?
My
process involves shooting an object or space that has a lot of destruction and/or
chaos to it. By shooting only areas that are rough and jagged, I force the
viewer to look at pieces that they may avoid in real life experience, which
forces them to question their surroundings.
·
How do you want your audience to view your work? Do you want
them to react in a certain way?
I don’t want to force viewers to feel
as if this destruction is a result of their own doing. I want the viewer to
question and wonder about the areas history and how it’s ended up as it has
today. I want viewers to look at my photographs and feel uncomfortable because
it’s subject matter surrounds something that they may not trespass into on a
regular basis.
By shooting only
areas that are rough and jagged, I force the viewer to look at pieces that they
may avoid in real life experience, which forces them to question their
surroundings
My artwork captures the
physical evidence of social issues about homelessness in rural environments by
transforming found objects and photographs into sculptural instillations that
evoke the presence of abandoned homes.
My process involves photographing an object or
space in an abandoned area that has a lot of destruction and/or chaos to it, in
my current community of southern Maryland. I then take these photographs and
combine them with found objects, which are usually assumed to be trash or waste.
The items include chairs, wallpaper, dirt, personal documents, desks and other
household items.
The act of collecting these objects and
integrating them with photographs of the areas they were found in allows me to
force the viewer into having a physicalized experience that makes them question
their own location and space, and how or if they should respond. From these
elements I can create a large-scale instillation of multiple layered objects
and photographs that embody the voyeuristic denial that allows most of us to
turn away from the social issues that inhabit this county.
By combining found objects with
photographs of abandoned homes and areas into full scale instillations I can
express my personal struggle towards the carless disregard of the homeless
community.
Walking into abandoned homes since I was a teenager
sparked my interest in figuring out the history of these places. Running into
owners of properties and hearing stories of their past relatives who’ve lived
there. Going to the American Art Museum and seeing Edward Kienholz work of
“sollie” made me feel like I was back in that hotel, and made me wonder what
happened to the old man in the room, if he was ok or still alive. The exhibit
made me question social issues of abandoneness in my own community---how many
areas are there like this in st. mary’s county?
(sounds good for
a statement…)
. I am
interested in ideas about space, abandoned homes and the history attached to
them. The physicalized experience created is expressed through the process of
combining found objects and photographs
“This forced participation with the artwork makes it a
visceral and physicalized experience that is hard to shake. I was constantly
confronted with my own location in the space and what, where and how I should
respond”
This sculptural tableau is part theatre, part installation
and a participatory art event that embodies the voyeuristic denial that allows
so many of us to simply walk away and be silent in numerous social situations
unfolding around us.
(force the viewer to
feel as if they should participate in this situation…make them question whether
or not they should do something about this place..about homelessness and people
living in these areas)???? History of sites and areas is more important!!
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