Alva, OK
Guest Artist at Northwestern Oklahoma State University, 2014
"Contemporary Views"
group exhibition at Graceful Arts Center
"View from Route 64"
burlap, ribbon, string & wood
8' x 12'w x 12'd
This piece uses everyday materials in an unexpected way that is both inspired by the regional landscape, as well as design with a specific installation site in mind - in this case the Graceful Arts Center gallery. This particular piece is also influenced by several other artistic genres including (but not limited to) Fiber Art, Op Art and Minimalism.
The colors and shapes reference softly sloping hills, rows of budding or freshly plowed crops, and vast open sky that characterize Alva’s surroundings. The method of travel by highway, both a practical practice and a classic American “road trip” pastime, is also referenced in the use of perspective and vanishing points that seem to shift much like when you view a field of crops from a moving vehicle on the highway. Furthermore, The position of two “land” masses with a narrow pathway between them also references the scenic view from the road, while the lines representing the sky are arranged with a forced perspective that recalls the way the highway seems to come to narrow as it approaches the horizon line.
This piece invites viewers to participate with the artwork by walking around and though it, finding themselves inside the artwork. The viewer’s movement will cause the artwork to appear to move and change as well. The objects shift in color, perspective and volume as you look at them from different angles. Notice as you enter the gallery, the sky appears to be merely a single line of blue, and the first ground piece appears to be narrow and almost flat. Then, as you walk into the room the sky is revealed to be a series of blue lines that fan outward and the ground piece begins to stretch out taking shape and growing in volume. If you crouch low, more green and blue is visible, but if you pass closer to the ground pieces warmer reds, pinks and oranges come into focus. In addition, as you continue walking around the ground pieces the contrasting green and red colors vibrate against one another. The artwork and artist invite you to consider your own interpretations and references from personal experience, which is as much a part of the artwork as that of the artist.
"Spirit Catcher"
land surveying tape
8'h x 12'w x 12'd
