Artist Statement | Image Gallery | Close Portfolio (and return to SMP index) Artist Statement
|
|
What I mean by symbolic representation is that the work of art is a
representative of the thought or feeling, not the thing itself. For example
the most
highly rendered landscape painting isn’t the landscape itself
but an image of it, the idea of it. It is this understanding of what
a painting
is that
plays a major role in the way my images turn out. The way a painting looks should be an indication of the identity of
the artist, and the artists’ interests. I am talking about the artist
hand, and when it is present in the work the work becomes more human, and
truly beautiful. Swimming then became a natural subject for my work, because
it had defined me as a person for the last 12 years. Aside from the subject
matter however there should be something about the work that shows through,
and that is the unique personality and style of the artist. This idea of
the artist’s identity being at the forefront of the piece comes from
my background in Graffiti art. Before St. Mary’s I had no art training,
except for what I learned from graffiti culture. The choices that I have
made in my works, stylistically and philosophically can be easily traced
back to my involvement in an unappreciated outcast form of art. To me paintings are paintings. I am not trying to recreate the world
around me because I feel that it is pointless, it could never be done
justice.
If I were interested in that I wouldn’t make an image of it, I
would simply take you the viewer to the place and have you experience
it for
yourself. The work I have created is about trying to understand the experience
of swimming, and express it in such a way that will allow the audience
to see the beauty in it that I do. I am creating paintings about the sport of swimming. The paintings themselves
are the lie, because they are not the sport of swimming but visual representation
of it. My hopes are that the images will provoke some sort of response. Although
the painting as an object maybe a lie, the meaning, my perception of the experience
and how I express it are very real. This is the truth that Picasso spoke of.
By seeing past the surface of the work and searching for the meaning or reasoning
behind the art the truth is revealed. My connection to the sport is very deep. I was a competitive swimmer the last 12 years of my life. To be a competitive swimmer you must dedicate your life to the sport. A competitive swimmer will practice on average 7 to 12 times a week. For a high school student that means practice in the morning before school, practice in the afternoon after school, and practice on the weekends, and there is no off-season. It was through this total emersion into the sport that I gained a greater understanding and respect for the sport. It is the understanding, respect and love of the sport that was my life that I would like to share with everyone in my work. |
Artist Statement | Image Gallery | Close Portfolio (and return to SMP index) |