Artist Statement:
The process and imagery in my work are closely related. The process shapes composition and subject matter, and the imagery influences the process. Familiar imagery draws from friends, local flora, fauna, and landscape.
I refer to this work as “painting” because they are mostly one medium, and are more akin to hard edge painting than collage. Photography and colo studies aid in the creation of a detailed study – which is sometimes a finished piece on its own. The study is referenced to make the inlaid cut paper work. The papers are a combination of stock archival papers and paper tinted with acrylic or flashe vinyl. The paper is cut with a scalpel, inlaid and attached to a panel with PVA glue. It’s important to me that it’s a reversible process, so areas can be reworked as needed. The final work is UV coated and maintains the paper’s original matte sheen. The surface area is flat with occasional marks of my imperfection in the form of small gaps between paper pieces.
During the process of creating these works, different shaped papers are created from the negative spaces and form a combination of other projects. At times, these arrangements appear more interesting to me than the familiar imagery. I treat these objects as still lifes; rearranging and photographing in various groupings which are then constructed in inlaid cut paper similarly to the familiar imagery.
Here are some process photos: