Artist\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Statement<\/p>\n
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I came to _gaia with the desire to channel my experiences as a member of the Wonder Women project into the creation of a piece of art that expanded upon my artistic style. Becoming a part of a closely-knit community of female artists deepened my understanding of my own artwork and challenged me to rethink the goals of each individual piece that I produce. As an artist who struggles to find clarity in daily life, I am fascinated by the power and mystery of the written word. I often find myself building three-dimensional narratives from text that has been inspired by a specific event or influence on my life. Discussions with the other Wonder Women inspired me to embark upon a new kind of textual project. Instead of writing text on my own, I would collect it from other people; instead of creating a small sculpture, I would produce a large-scale installation; this time, I would tell a story through names.<\/p>\n
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The Love Project lived in the back of my mind for quite some time before the support of the Wonder Women led me to pursue it as an artistic endeavor. My idea was to gather pieces of paper containing names of people that other people had been in love with. Then, I planned to turn the papers into an installation that reflected the emotions they contained. I arranged to collect names by mail, email, and in person. For the last option, I created a sealed and decorated shoebox with a slot cut in the top to insure anonymity\u00e2\u20ac\u201dit quickly became known as the love box. For several weeks the Love Project and I were inseparable. The love box traveled with me to parties, Wonder Women meetings, my office, and even my brother\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s wedding. I posted calls for artistic assistance to different websites, and compulsively checked the email address that I had created for the project. I hounded friends in other cities and states to pass my contact information to everyone they knew.<\/p>\n
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Having never attempted an accumulation project before, it was daunting to discover that the success of this piece depended on the cooperation of other people. I was initially afraid that people would be unwilling to share something so personal as the name of the person they are or were in love with. I quickly discovered that people were not just willing, but eager to contribute. Complete strangers emailed me stories of lost love and thanked me for the chance to unburden their hearts. As I gathered the names together, I realized that the installation should comunicate the unpredictable nature of love itself while remaining anchored in the emotions that radiate from each piece of paper. The final incarnation of the Love Project is meant to literally and figuratively tie together the stories that these names contain, but do not necessarily tell.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Artist\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s Statement \u00c2\u00a0\u00c2\u00a0 I came to _gaia with the desire to channel my experiences as a member of the Wonder Women project into the creation of a piece of art that expanded upon my artistic style. Becoming a part of … Continue reading