Artist Statement
Three issues center my work: story-telling, process, and materials. The stories I tell are often cryptic, sometimes unintelligible, seldom explicit. Most often, only I know the story. It may be a secret. It is not important to me that the viewer understand MY story. But it is essential that ambiguity is part of my equation, providing room for viewers to enter, to then construct their own saga.
I may wake up with an image in my mind, or a phrase that keeps repeating in my head, or hear a news story that triggers a visceral reaction. I trust that physical response. I take it to the studio to make that somewhat vague, vaporous idea into solidity.
The process and the materials drive me forward. This is my play, my joy, my relief. As my hands get dirty, my mind rests. There, in the studio, two obscure materials may clang together in dissonance, but fit my idea. I push, I play, and leave the story behind as I focus on the process. Each piece offers a unique set of problems to solve, and work flow to invent. Prepared for surprise or failure, I face the Muse or the Demon, both residing in my studio.
I invite you to follow my most recent work, in process, on my Instagram site @elbstudio.
I may wake up with an image in my mind, or a phrase that keeps repeating in my head, or hear a news story that triggers a visceral reaction. I trust that physical response. I take it to the studio to make that somewhat vague, vaporous idea into solidity.
The process and the materials drive me forward. This is my play, my joy, my relief. As my hands get dirty, my mind rests. There, in the studio, two obscure materials may clang together in dissonance, but fit my idea. I push, I play, and leave the story behind as I focus on the process. Each piece offers a unique set of problems to solve, and work flow to invent. Prepared for surprise or failure, I face the Muse or the Demon, both residing in my studio.
I invite you to follow my most recent work, in process, on my Instagram site @elbstudio.