EXHIBITION: "BEFRIENDING CHANGE: FROM HYPER-FIXATION TO FLOW"
In November of 2023 for my Undergraduate Senior Thesis project in Visual Arts. I focused on the Buddhist principle of "impermanence" which asserts everything is always fluctuating and changing and has a beginning and an end. I employed various approaches, including acrylic linoleum prints created directly on the wall; flat works made of pre-colored paper; and works that interact with three-dimensional space, created with hand-dyed paper and hand-mixed colors. In my personal experience, this body of work narrates my journey from being in a hyper-fixated state of mind into a centered state that more actively engages with and accepts change.
Essentially, I draw with a knife, hand-cutting paper to create work that serves as a mirror to my introspective, psycho-spiritual world. In my meditative process, I use a combination of intuition and deliberate planning to establish an intimate relationship with the paper, posing questions of drawing, painting, sculpture, and craft. In this body of work, I employed different line weights; formal dynamics between colors, shapes, and dimensionality; and attention to both detail and the whole of a picture plane defined by a wall.
There is an evolution in the dimensionality of form. From the left of the room to the right, I’ve intentionally placed these works from flat to three-dimensional, from geometric and linear to increasingly curvilinear. There is also the vulnerability of form present. My work is subject to the rough wall texture, lighting, minor wear and tear, and (for some more than others) gravity, and temporality in their existence, since some of these works were not preserved for reinstallation.
"Tunnel Vision," 2023, colored paper on colored paper, 26 x 34 inches
"Fixated," 2023, acrylic linoleum block prints on wall, 6x10 feet
"Untitled," 2023, dyed watercolor paper on wall, 91x36 inches
"Centered," 2023, colored paper on colored paper, 21 x 21 inches
"Interconnection," 2023, gouache and pre-dyed paper on watercolor paper, 40 x 40 inches
"Detached," 2023, colored paper on colored paper, 26 x 34 inches
"Flow," 2023, paper sculpture, gouache and ink mixture on watercolor paper, 96 x 67 x 22 inches
"Aware," hand-dyed watercolor paper on wall, 8 x 10 feet
"Impermanence," 2023, paper drawing with pre-colored paper, 20 x 26 inches
Detailed Description of Each Piece
Displayed in this order:
1) "Tunnel Vision" 2) Fixated 3) "Untitled" 4) "Centered" 5) "Interconnection"
6) "Detached" 7) "Flow" 8) "Aware" 9) "Impermanence"
6) "Detached" 7) "Flow" 8) "Aware" 9) "Impermanence"
"Tunnel Vision," 2023, colored paper & ink/gouache on colored paper, 26x34 inches
I used two layers of paper, where the main mark-making method is paper. Afterward, I came in and used a gouache and ink mixture to highlight some areas, and charcoal to darken others. It sits flat against the wall and is confined within a rigid funnel-like border that contains harsh, geometric shapes. The heavier-weighted shapes at the bottom create a cascading effect, drawing the eye downward.
"Fixated," 2023, acrylic linoleum block prints on wall, 6x9 feet
This linoleum block repetitive pattern print, is printed directly on the gallery wall, and is therefore defined by the wall itself. It is larger-than-life (about 6 feet tall and almost 10 feet wide rectangular) with 78 repetitive prints of a 9x12 inch linoleum block that I carved. I flipped the print each time, and now there are new continuous lines created. Inspired by the piece mounted to its left, I created a pattern that has geometric, harsh lines contained in a distinct, rectangular border. It has a bold presence and an equal level of density across its form. The colors are analogous and cool-toned, prompting a more single point of focus, rather than pulling the eye in multiple directions.
In reality, although this is a repetitive pattern, the nature of the print has elements of imperfection and fluctuation (alluding to impermanence). For example, the wall texture is evident and the consistency of the paint isn’t seamless across prints because of each unique print. So while the print presents itself as permanent and unchanging (because it is directly on the wall), it’s still very much susceptible to change and it did not exist forever because it was painted over in a couple of days.
My intention was to make this wall the starting point of a journey around the room. As the most static, seemingly unchanging piece, it embodies a fixated state of mind that may feel neverending but that eventually will pass and change as time goes on.
"Untitled," 2023, dyed watercolor paper on wall, 91x36 inches
This piece consists of nine, 36" rectangular strips of watercolor paper that I dyed with an ink/gouache/water mixture. The strips of paper are mounted taut to the wall, while numerous shadows deviate from the rigid nature of the paper, creating a sort of dual-energy, within this warm light. The straight lines perhaps reference the geometric shapes used on the linoleum wall print to its left, but the shadows introduce more variability in its interaction with the wall. The piece itself creates a willful illusion where the onsite shadows and gravity shape the work’s presence. The work enacts its meaning instead of depicting it, which is one reason why I chose to keep it Untitled.
"Centered," 2023, colored paper on colored paper, 21 x 21 inches
The warm light from "Untitled" travels into this next piece, "Centered," which uses analogous colors similar in tone and curvilinear shapes to create a sense of equilibrium. There aren’t any dominant points in the composition, and it blends the figure in with the background due to an absence of competing stimuli.
"Interconnection," 2023, gouache & pre-dyed paper on watercolor paper, 40x40 inches
In this piece, from afar, the colors seem to mush together since they are similar in tone. But when you get closer, the viewer sees how the colors complement one another, where the yellowness in the green compliments the purple and blue. When making this, I started with a white cold pressed paper, and I coded and mapped out my own language of where I would paint, glue down the pre-colored olive green paper, or cut out the base layer to expose the wall. I worked in sections in this additive and subtractive process to adapt to new connections between each segment. For the painted sections, I would paint the exact area based on where the green paper would go and where the wall would be exposed.
"Detached," 2023, colored paper and ink/gouache on colored paper, 26x34 inches
This piece is similar in line weight compared to the other 2-dimensional pieces. I mounted it off of the wall with thin nails so that the shadows added another layer between the wall and the paper. Now shadow acts as line and it is more evidently 3-dimensional. This piece dips a toe into 3-dimensionality, alluding to the next piece on its right (shown below).
"Flow," 2023, paper sculpture, ink/gouache mixture on watercolor paper, 96x67x22 inches
This paper sculpture is created out of two rectangular pieces of cold-pressed 140 lb. watercolor paper. It is anchored to the wall by several small points of Velcro. Further subtracting rectangular pieces from the paper, I manipulated and warped their original rigid form into more curvilinear shapes. The shadows created by the light sources further add to the distortion of its original rectangular form. After prototyping it with a blank piece of white paper, I created this in my studio and then transferred it to the gallery by simultaneously accepting and implementing change; I forced the paper into its form while also allowing gravity to influence its shape.
"Aware," hand-dyed watercolor paper on wall, 8x10 feet
Focused on the idea of palimpsest (the leftover remnants of what used to be), this piece brings awareness to the paper’s original rectangular or triangular form before its manipulation. There are cut and dye marks on the wall (as if the wall is the cutting mat) while the body of the paper is reimagined in different directions. I like to think of this as bringing awareness to certain old habits or predetermined states of mind/being and making an effort to establish new pathways — breaking free from the pattern.
This piece deconstructs and enacts new forms within a fluid and dimensional space. Like the corner piece it sits next to, I mixed my own colors dyed my own paper, and then cut out the shapes. The line weight here echoes some of the lines in the corner piece next to it. The pieces adhere to the wall with adhesive, and some ends of the paper are wedged inside the wall by making small incisions in the wall. This piece is defined by the wall, where the wall acts as the support.
"Impermanence," 2023, paper drawing with pre-colored paper, 20x26 inches
