Embedded Files
Modern Reality
Displayed at the Dittmar Memorial Gallery at the SITE x Dittmar Anniversary Exhibition
This collection began with an exploration of modern media and the truth behind their tinted and capitalistic renditions of reality. The piece "Sway" is an examination of the endless flux of nature at the hands of humanity, an undulation in and out of stability powered by the harsh human machine of "progress". The piece utilizes semi-transparent lighting gels to give a frame-by-frame progression to the saplings sway. The soft and natural background of puzzled collage pieces and soil is contrasted with the sharp mechanical industry of the foreground. Within "Tinted" I created a self-portrait of sorts that aims to highlight the violence of our society against nature and one-another. To accomplish this the lighting gels return, overlaying a darkened assemblage of carefully selected images that are shaded into the background. The overall idea of the piece highlights the colorful lens we tint disaster with in our world, highlighting the exploitation of disaster and misery for our own self-promotion. These ideals naturally progressed me into thinking about my home country: The United States...
Sway
Cardboard, Magazine, Lighting Gels, Darkroom Print, Aluminum Foil, Soil, Matte Medium, Acrylic
Tinted
Cardboard, Magazine, Lighting Gels, Darkroom Print, Matte Medium, Clear Tape, Foam, Acrylic
Push for Conservation
Cardboard, Magazine Clippings, Matte/Gloss Gel Medium, Paper, Charcoal, Acrylic, Interference, Ink
Within the United States, the media is increasingly becoming a tool to exploit, erase, and misinform. The sheer quantity of hate that has been able to surface in a country built on foundational ideas of community and cultural exchange isn't surprising, but is notably ironic. Within "Push for Conservation" and "Church and State," I highlight the involvement of the public in these crises by having them become participatory. The former requires the viewer to push the stick through the cardboard and expel the American LGBTQ+ figures therein. In the latter, I present the work as double sided and allow it to be passed around the exhibition space. Allowing people to physically interact with the work highlights their involvement. No political opinion in this age is a political opinion, these works attempt to emphasize that.
As for "United We Stand," this piece emphasizes the existence of LGBTQ+ people and iconography throughout American history. One cannot exist without the other, thus vintage americana images are stained with the original Gilbert-Baker Pride flag, and vintage LGBTQ+ images are stained with the American flag.
United We Stand
Cardboard, Paper, Acrylic, Matte Medium
Church and State
Wood, Acrylic, Vinyl
The final piece in the collection is another interactable object, this time in the form of a daily pill dispenser for PrEP medication. This object is deeply queer in its function, historical significance, and utilization of bingo cards from a session of drag bingo. That said, I also wanted to draw attention to the larger scheme of American healthcare, where vital, life-saving medication can become a game of profits. Perhaps, if one is lucky in this society we call our own, you'll one day shout "bingo" and watch all of your problems trickle down to those less lucky...
The America Game
Descovy Pill Container, Bingo Sheets, Hot Glue
Social Bubbles
How many people touch your life every day? Have been woven into it throughout your history? In my series, Social Bubbles, I employed watercolor and layering techniques to depict the intricate detail of our endless interconnectivity. Each color represents a relationship, each bubble an individual, and their neverending overlaid complexity. I got the idea for this series when thinking about how all of our relationships include ourselves, and thus exist in the same space as one another. My relationship with myself, my best friend, and my partner all live within me, and each group dynamic added onto that only increases the saturation of my social sphere. Depicting that idea, one not dissimilar to the well known six degrees of seperation, I focused on minute details that when viewed as a whole melt into one another - just like our personalities.
Social Bubble
Watercolor
Social Bubbles
Watercolor & Interference
Social Macro
Watercolor & Interference
Colorful Language
The power of a word is seldom underestimated, and in my series Colorful Language, I aimed to explore just that. With each piece I chose a single word and crafted a non-objective composition using watercolor, alcohol markers, and color pencil. Throughout this series I focused heavily on highlighting the feeling of a word through color, shape, and layout to craft beautifully composed pieces that may also serve as the basis for applied arts projects. The pieces range from flowing and natural to rigid and anticipatory all reflecting the complex nature of language and our associations with it. Fill out my contact form if you're interested in purchasing any of these pieces - sized 9 x 6 in and 12 x 9 in.
Watercolor & Color Pencil
Alcohol Marker & Color Pencil
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