ARTISTS STATEMENT
Collecting is a very personal thing. Like others who have collections, over time they can become an obsession, a burden, a curiosity, a joy, even a legacy. Collections get passed on as cherished objects, dusty boxes of junk and most often, if they escape attics and garages, find their way to flea markets and antique malls all over the world. There they live like refuges among other collections, out of sync with the time and context they were lovingly born into.
A number of years ago, I created a body of work based on my personal collections. I recreated my entire creative process until a body of work emerged that became a 3 dimensional autobiography relating the story of my creative journey. These works on canvas are technically referred to as mixed media collages, but I call them CANVAS COLLAGES. I love working on the canvas as both a surface, and as a nod to my years of primarily being a painter and the layer of artistic history .
By breaking up my collections and using the objects and ephemera as design elements, I told the stories of life lessons learned over the years of making art and living life.
What I had learned from my creative journey, was how it related to everything in life.
Art, to me, is nothing more than the ‘fine art of living’. By reviewing my life experiences approaching 60, I saw not an ending, but a way to start again. The works were metaphors for letting go of things. That body of work was entitled, TO END IS TO BEGIN.
I did not anticipate further investigation into collecting after that exhibit, so it was surprising to discover I felt compelled to continue the story of collections. Having released my own, the abandoned collections of others still spoke to me. This new body of work is more lighthearted, more humorous and addresses collectibles more specifically. By honoring the broader world of collectors and collections, I hope to connect with that bigger audience that has, at some time in their life, collected THESE FOOLISH THINGS.
****************************************************************************************
The new works, THESE FOOLISH THINGS, hang together in one gallery, while a few of the original canvas collages from the TO END IS TO BEGIN series hang in the adjoining gallery as a nod to yet another ending and beginning.
This show opening will be photographed and posted on my web site where you can also see the original autobiographical series in still and video form. Please enjoy my BLOG posts as well, where I post my creative musings, travel adventures and thoughts on living the creative life.