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PAINTING

My work is about growth in the face of isolation and isolation amidst never-ending accumulation; the stretching, expansion, piling, and spilling of an otherly world. The landmasses and pieces of architecture remind us of scaffolding, ladders, and mountains. Vibrantly colored mounds fill the surfaces, often taking the place of homes. Growing like moss these shapes wrap around and cling to the surface of the mountainous structures.

 The paintings and drawings are made with inorganic materials. Acrylic, latex, tape, ink and various collage materials build up and spill out. Their plasticity and different shapes create form and a delicate balance, newly developing and maybe not so stable. Caught in a moment of fragility, piles may fall and rivers overflow. In the face of all this there is no one around. The silence is felt even in the brightest of landscapes and under the warmest of skies.

 The work is also very much process based. Working on the floor, a spill will become a river, a lake, or a dripping sky; a lumpy sand filled mound is a rock; and a collection of collaged colored tiles sits on the landscape like a house on a hill. I am always collecting and storing materials for my paintings. Studio space would grant me the ability to fully utilize my paint, ink, and found objects on large-scale landscapes.

 Viewers of my work, both large and small scale, are invited inside the spaces where they move around guided by lines and colors. Unusual lines, colors and shapes move the viewer around the piece and over it's hills, allowing them to explore the tiny details living on each. Each separate painting has its own forms and structures, as well as balance of color and texture. I invite viewers to get lost in the intricacies.

PHOTOGRAPHY

The collection of photographs that was originally presented as my senior project, entitled "Self-Titled", is a body of work that has come together over the process of four years. They are color images of female-born men and women who are challenging the gender role assigned to them in some way. There are people who identify as women, men, FTM, tranny, boi, butch, and gender queer amongst others. It is in this way that my that my project is self-titled. It is made up of fifteen people who have labeled themselves or not labeled themselves however they feel most comfortable.

Last winter I placed the first of two ads for subjects to be photographed and began to take pictures just of the people I connected with through the ad and through friends. A long chain of acquaintances began to develop as one friend led me to the next and eventually to what my project would ultimately be about: the gender queer and transgender community. The relationships that grew out of the photo sessions helped the project to then become extremely personal. It was no longer just a place for me to feel slightly uncomfortable and make images; it was a place where I explored parts of myself. Collier Schorr takes pictures of boys to see what it would have been like if she had been born a male. I don't take pictures to see what it would have been like, but rather to see what I already have in me that traverse both the male and the female. I feel a part of the community and if not directly in how I label myself, as an ally of those who do chose to be the most open and honest about themselves as possible.