Artist Statement Notes: Subtle Spectacle

Note: this post came from journal notes I’m making as I rewrite my artist statement, a task that is part of my DIY artist residency. 

Years ago I took a botany class and on field hikes our instructor would say, “Botanists go slow.” So many amazing things are not readily obvious on quick glance.

Nature is sometimes quiet, sometimes showy, and sometimes both–a subtle spectacle. For instance, every couple of years, after a rain, our yard is covered with tiny toads– thousands of them–but due to their size and color, which blends with the ground, it takes a moment to notice them. Once one does though the spectacle begins and it becomes difficult to avoid stepping on them. I’m also struck by spectacle when we open up one of our hives; humming, movement, masses of bees, comb and honey, all in such a small space. In my art, I use the repetition of imagery and the layers of varying transparencies to represent this abundance.

Flying insects hold several layers of meaning in the work, intermediaries between cultivated places and wilderness as well as material and immaterial worlds. I imagine that their lightness of being, rapid movements, and ability to fly give them access to spaces I find difficult to enter, both physically and metaphorically.

They are emissaries to other worlds.