MFA-ness

• 2011-11-01

  

  So…….

  One of the things I’ve been experimenting with is levels of transparencies, layering, obscuring and revealing. This has led me to lots of different materials such as: very thin fabrics, encaustic, gloss medium, cheese cloth, plexi, and resin (amongst others). 

  I’m really digging the resin, because you can layer and suspend objects and create limitless compositions while sort of making these “object paintings” 

  I’m still not sure where or how these will play into the bigger body of work, but they sure have been fun to make.

• 2011-10-17

  

  My time in the MFA program is divided in two. The first half of the program leads up to the Midway presentation. The Midway basically consists of all the work and research I have done since beginning the program. Once I pass my midway, the rest of my time will be spent working on my Thesis. 

  I am scheduled to hold my Midway presentation in one month. I’ll spend this month furthering a couple explorations and trying to distill down the high points of the past 14 months, and believe me there have been many.

  I’m pretty amazed at all the growth I see thus far and am excited to see the direction my work takes from here.

  Wish me well!

• 2011-10-05

  People travel to wonder at the height of the mountains, at the huge waves of the seas, at the long course of the rivers, at the vast compass of the ocean, at the circular motion of the stars, and yet they pass by themselves without wondering. —Augustine

• 2011-09-20

  

  There are several things happening in the studio right now…

  Big all-over paintings, with lots of paint and string and “let’s see what happens when I do this” moments.

  Layers and layers of resin with maps and string and paint and cheese cloth and text and more paint.

  Tiny little mono-prints with text and maps and screen prints and canvas and fabric and paper all sewn together. 

• 2011-09-08

  

  I know what you’re gonna say (whoever you are) and I know…

  The title of this book is almost laughable and really makes me question if I’m smart enough to read it, however it is THE one book I am committed to reading this semester. 

• 2011-09-07

  

  It’s time to start blogging once again… 

  Semester 4 (if you’re counting summer (and I am)) is in full swing. I’ve moved into a new studio space and am settling in for a great semester.

  I’ll be enjoying the following as part of my coursework:

  Abstract Expressionism, Painting and some New Media work. 

  The summer held lots of unexpected surprises, my work took a sharp right hand turn and I am really interested to see where it goes from here.

  My self imposed mandate for the semester is EXPLORE and EXPERIMENT. I’m scheduled to hold my mid-way review in November and after that it will be full steam ahead into my Thesis work, so stay tuned!

• 2011-07-11

  

  Nina Katchadourian does so much fantastic work and I especially enjoy her work with maps. 

  Check it out here:

  http://www.ninakatchadourian.com/maps/mapdissection.php

• 2011-06-29

  

  I have FEW theories about art-making, but here is one:

  I have a strong belief or trust in the studio process.

  As an artist, sometimes (most times) you come to ideas intuitively. The ideas may be ambiguous, un clarified, at best mere hunches.

  My belief is that in order to clarify and bring to life the nebulous-ness, you have to open the door to the studio, walk in and start working. Work on anything and let the work articulate the ideas. It’s as if as you create, you discover.

  Let me be clear: I REALLY BELIEVE THIS. Maybe it’s just based on my own experience as one who has a large number of un-articulatible ideas. The longer you’re in the studio, the more the ideas emerge, clarify, and come to life. 

  I read something this morning that sums up my thoughts pretty well: 

  Reginald Gibbons says: “The articulation becomes the knowing; the knowing comes out of the process, and it refuels a further effort at articulation. A sense of ecstatic fruitfulness, of rich discoveries, of voyaging, comes to us in exhilarating moments of being-in-our-work-in-progress.”
  
  I say all this to let you know that this summer I am really putting this belief to the test. At the end of the semester, I came to what felt like, an abrupt halt in my work and took a sharp left hand turn. In ways, I feel like I am starting from scratch with no real imagery or idea of what I am trying to get at. In the back of my head, I keep saying, “Just trust the process.”
  
  Right now, that’s about all I have. Trust. 

• →

  From Maps of the Imagination…

  Art examines not reality but existence. And existence is not what has occurred, existence is the realm of human possibilities, everything that can become, everything one is capable of. Artists draw up the map of existence by discovering human possibility.

• 2011-06-19

  

  My course work for the summer includes completing a painting every. single. day.

  
  Just two weeks in, I am already feeling really challenged by it all. My goal was to force myself to work quickly, loosen up and work through multiple ideas quickly. The fact that I am finding it such a challenge is evidence enough that I am learning and growing.

  
  I continue to be drawn to the use of metaphor as a primary vehicle for communicating my ideas. Much of my research draws comparisons between the brain and maps, geography, landscape, real-estate, etc… As I begin to explore my ideas of neuro-plasticity, I will be utilizing visual elements common in map-making. I am still very much in the intuitive stage with these ideas and have no idea where or how these paintings will evolve, but I trust the process enough to know that in a month, I’ll have much more to say.

  
  My only constraints for my daily paintings are size, 8”X8” and some sort of map related imagery. 

  
  Stay tuned for images and research related discussion!