my eyes’ windows brim
Reflecting my interest in ideas about time, memory and the notion of perception, my aim with my art has been to convey a sense of fragility and the passage of time.
With emphasis on materials and the idea of process itself, my current body of work is comprised of fifty images that share a sense of tactility, play, experimentation, and historical referencing. My point of departure was to explore the loss that we share collectively, the human impact on the planet and coral bleaching in particular. My inspiration came from a quote that visually described coral bleaching, a process whereby the coral colonies lose their colour. The significance of this of work for me is in its effort. This series is a narrative sequence of my thought process and artistic practice; a record of an attempt to understand notions of the ephemeral.
Working on unprimed surfaces offers a fragility that underscores the ephemeral nature of my subject matter as well as giving the impression of an unfinished immediacy. Repetition slows the viewer down and is an important component; it is about obsessions, my process and the human condition.
Coral 2017 – 2018
When the ocean’s temperature warms too much and there is too much direct sunlight, the flesh of the coral lose their colour and turn completely white.
“I thought I’d describe the fluorescing… The flesh of the coral turns clear when the water warms too much and there is too much direct sunlight. The skeleton inside that is revealed though the clear flesh, traps the light and appears to glow. This is even more obvious when there is the sunscreen chemical coloration… the corals appear to glow in their incredibly vivid colors. I was blown away… I’ve never seen something so beautiful, but it’s dying.” Richard Vevers, Founder and CEO, The Ocean Agency
Using brain coral patterns as a starting point, unprimed surfaces were left outside to fade in the sunlight, creating marks that were masked out by the coral patterns; my intent was to mimic the bleaching process by using the sun to bleach the coral patterns.
Numbers 2018 – 2021
There is a counting; how long will it be, how long did that take, what time is it now, how many months you’ve been here now you count the 36 lights on the hospital ceiling, what time is it, now, the counting itself is the point. Reducing the disorder, you label it, try to make sense of it and hold onto it.
The sun created marks that were masked out by square shapes; natural sunlight
acted as a descriptive artistic tool and an element of time. Blurred shapes have a flexible, evolving uniformity. My choice of counting follows no overall principle; this is a series of geometric shapes that relate to each other and suggest the passage of time.
Forrest 2019 – 2020
Most of Notre Dame Cathedral’s wood frame structure that supported the roof sustained serious damage in the fire. The frame structure was given the name Forrest because of the large number of beams, each beam being made from one tree. Details of ornate metal lattice work on the roof remained after the fire; fragmented intricate black lines, circles and arcs were inscribed against the sky.
Imperfectly rendered graphite lines that describe the latticework were placed onto wood surfaces in an effort to reimagine what has been lost. My drawing process had a calligraphic quality; lines appeared almost orthographic, as if they were an extract of a secret language expressing an urgent message.
Tide 2021
I watch the ripples change their size
But never leave the stream
Of warm impermanence
And so, the days float through my eyes
But still the days seem the same
David Bowie, Changes
I am aware of the passage of time and its significance to my work; every time I return to it, its meaning changes because my context has changed.
While drawing and redrawing the coral patterns over the course of two years, my lines changed and softened, and the coral frond shapes began to resemble Matisse’s work. I continued working with the intention of sampling Matisse’s shapes and lines, layering the past onto the present.
heather graham
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