Smoke Series - Artist Statement (2011)
“… Passersby See Only a Wisp of Smoke.”
This series of drawings is an idea on the move. It is continually changing, much like the nature of the subject matter. What started as a compositional study of a complicated natural design, quickly became a much more conceptual body of work.
This exhibit marks the debut of the project. It is a working collaboration with poet, Tyler Akers, and the first of his writings in the series are on display with the associated pieces. This literary component creates a layer of depth and context for the viewer that may not otherwise be achieved through visual language alone. The drawing and the poem play off each other using elements found in both: challenging compositional structure, abstraction, inversion, realism, and minimalism. It is a marriage between the literary and the visual, the linear and the organic, the minimal and the complex. Each art form with its individual perspective has something unique to offer.
The title of this exhibit is taken from a quote by Vincent Van Gogh…
“There may be a great fire in our soul, yet no one comes to warm himself at it. Passersby see only a wisp of smoke.”
The smoke drawings and poetry create an illustration for this struggle. They attempt to challenge the viewer to pause and look more closely at the relationship between art and life. They are an invitation to explore and reconcile what one sees with what is there. Something greater exists beyond the visible plane. The smoke itself is merely a product of a fire.
