I am a little behind today. My rhythm has been thrown off by the recent snow here in Seattle and I almost let myself off the hook with my ‘Piece of the Week’ post tonight. But I wanted to make sure that I stay committed to posting about my work weekly, because it is both important to me and it forces me to reflect on the work I create consistently.
Untitled, 5"x 5" casein on teak wood
I don’t have a title for this one yet, and I am not sure if I am finished with it, but I created it with the intent to acknowledge the importance of protecting the environment. This is a common theme in most of my work, especially because I strive to use up-cycled wood or materials as my canvas, in an effort to reduce waste. I started this piece with a simple muted grey background and then attacked the painting with deliberate line and color. My hope is that others will associate the shapes and lines of this piece with the same organic shapes found in nature. As humans, we impact the world around us every single day, and I believe it is important to recognize the consequences of our daily actions
I realize that there are many other important priorities in life as well, and the environment may not be at the top of everyone’s list. This is okay too. I’m here to shed light, not push opinions. People should pursue what fulfills them, and what they are passionate about. But the planet that we live on gives us life, every single day. We exist because the Earth allows us to breathe, and to eat. Is it really so outrageous to want to put effort into protecting the resources that we need for our own existence?
This painting is meant to share an abstracted form of the fragmentation and threats that currently exist to vital resources, such as water and land. It is meant to display the division that exists among us, and how delicate and muddy the world and our society has become. It is a small painting trying to speak with a powerful voice. Perhaps not everyone will see what I envisioned in this piece, but I hope hearing the story behind it either makes someone stop and think, or encourages another continue to fight for our universal mother.