another artist statement draft

“If a person thinks the same way he did five years ago then he has wasted his time.”

Shattering a previous assumption brings light to the undiscovered.  In an epiphany a previous perception is dismissed; a person realizes they were wrong, feels vulnerable, regrets, stops wasting time and adapts.  These instances are defining, leaving us stronger. I love being surprised by answers to questions I did not know existed.

As a child I loved science.  Building and investigating stuff was what I did.  Growing up a mile away from downtown Denver I was able explore.  The chaos of the city is what I love about my childhood. In a densely populated city people work as a unit.  Impossibilities shrink with communication.  In my work I explore opportunities in unanswerable questions.  Being fascinated with the unknown I investigate epiphanies and their lasting impression on our development. 

I work with found materials.  Tangible objects carry their inherent meaning while symbols can only allude.  I like working in sculpture because gives my work more voice.  I think three-dimensionally, using volume and scale to make my work.  I want to motivate people to evolve to the changing world.

the body and my work

I work with environmental issues, specifically water pollution.  There is very little that can affect a person’s body as much as their environment.  The body absorbs what is around it and is able to adapt, metabolize and heal.  When drinking water is polluted our bodies are stressed and while they try to heal it is not always possible.  The introduction of minerals and heavy metals is detrimental to the environment and may never be removed. 

In my own work I use clay and mining waste, specifically iron right now, to explore the irremovability of pollutants from the organic.  I am currently leaching rust and iron into clay.  I am using two techniques to do so: first I am creating rigs that let water and iron sit on the clay and slowly seep in, second I am using running water to erode the clay, introducing iron I am able to create natural feeling riverbeds.  I am using clay because it can be dissected, it is pristine and it has density.  The clay serves as an analogue to nature, living creatures and our own bodies. 

I am not sure how I would use the polluted clay.  I was thinking of cutting cross-sections and making bathroom tiles.  I could also display the riverbeds as is, focusing on its texture.  I want to associate the clay with day-to-day life and living with pollution’s irremovability.  Taste is also important to my project.