THE IMAGES OF PLANTS AND TREES IN NANCY SUTOR'S EXHIBIT ABSENCE/PRESENCE WERE CREATED BY THE PRIMAL MARKMAKING POWER OF LIGHT AND CHEMISTRY AND REPRESENT THE CYCLE OF THE SEASONS. THEY ARE REVERSE SILHOUETTES, THE PATTERNS AND OBJECTS ARE LIGHT NOT DARK AND ARE NOT OBJECTS AT ALL BUT THE SHADOWS OF OBJECTS -- REMOVED AND EPHEMERAL, LUCID ABSTRACTIONS OF CONCRETE AND MATERIAL THINGS. THE REAL SUBJECT HOWEVER IS TIME, THE SPACE BETWEEN, A STATE OF IMMINENT CHANGE, WHERE MOVEMENT AND STILLNESS MEET. EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE MADE IN THE SUN THESE PRINTS KNOW THE MOON, THE DARKNESS AND THE HEALING THAT HAPPENS IN SLEEP, IN THE DARK DIRT WHERE SEEDS GERMINATE.
ABSENCE/PRESENCE
The apple tree, the lily and the chrysanthemum
live in the garden, the pot and the vase.
Gardeners create cultivated and controlled
environments to commemorate and civilize
our genetic link to the wilderness.
Through the seasons plants and trees
bud, bloom,
leaf out, bear fruit,
change color, drop leaves, go dormant.
Rocks and weeds are removed,
topsoil enriched, trees and perennials are planted,
parts are erased parts are added,
a garden is made
...
These images of plants and trees are created
by the primal markmaking power of light and chemistry
and represent the cycle of the seasons through one year
and like the plants themselves depend on light
and weather for manifestation.
They are reverse silhouettes, the patterns and objects
are light not dark and are not objects at all
but the shadows of objects -- removed and
ephemeral, lucid abstractions
of concrete and material things.
The real subject however is time,
the space between,
a state of imminent change,
where movement and stillness meet.
Even though they are made in the sun
these prints know the moon,
the darkness and the healing that happens in sleep,
in the dark dirt where seeds germinate.
Nancy Sutor
ELIZABETH BROWN'S WORK IN HER EXHIBIT DELICATE RECIPROCITY REPRESENTED THE RESIDUE OF HER PERSONAL EXPLORATION OF CONNECTION. BROWN STATED THAT HER PIECES WERE INSPIRED FROM "THE LANDSCAPE OF HUMAN INTERACTION." SHE WORKED WITH CLOTH, WOOD AND DYE TO CREATE THE PIECES FEATURED IN THE EXHIBIT.
“My art is an active process of connecting my daily experiences with my thoughts. It is material understanding and metaphoric expression inextricably bound together.
I see humans as organic images, moving patterns made corporeal. I study the methods of our elegant patterns of communication. In the moments of our connection with each other, our thoughts and experiences take physical shape. Visual language provides the ground where my systems, models, and ways of knowing - the human experience - become tangible substance. This substance provides both structure and fluidity.
The crisp geometry of wooden boxes and flat shelves contrast with found organic objects: branches, rocks and stones. Their containment and uniformity pose questions about implied boundaries. Cloth when mixed with plaster, and covering torqued boxes creates a solid texture that belies its previous flowing nature. Mirrored and connected in form, these boxes illustrate our social relationships. When grouped together, the undulating surfaces define a social landscape, a pattern of containment and integration.
I contemplate the qualities of human existence and our social interactions. Through my art I intend to give these thoughts concrete form. This process is a flow between the manifestation of my senses and the reflection of my mind.”
- Elizabeth Brown, artist
