Location: Canada
I LOVE JUNK!
As I travel in different countries, including my own, I find I need to create art to continue my experience and memories of those places. My assemblage pieces consist of found objects combined with my photographs and treasures collected during my travels. The found objects I collect can vary from a souvenir Statue of Liberty from New York to a complete set of sun dried animal vertebrae found on the beach in Mexico. Rusted items of all shapes and sizes and the odd religious item complete my set of living heritage objects gathered on a trip. I am attracted to the kitsch as well as the organic. My photos also reflect that flavor as well with images of fences, altars, clouds, architecture and textures of all kinds.
My studio is a visual feast piled high with labeled, clear plastic boxes and drawers stuffed chock o block on shelves holding my collections of junk and treasures and my files of photographs are categorized under themes such as fences, rust, texture, chairs, etc. There are over 250 images of abandoned chairs in one of my photo files. I rescue old wood boxes, metal boxes and containers of all sorts. Getting out my treasures and creating an assemblage in a favorite box takes me back to a memory of a special trip, person or event. Because of my assemblage work my photography is not usually just a photo in a frame, I find I need to embellish it in some way to compete its story.
I like to work in series mostly due to the fact that I collect in multiples but I also find my thought process needs more than one piece to be complete. An example of this would be my two large Chinese shrines. The two titles are “Live Life to Death” and “Die to Live”. The first one is dark with the Virgen of Guadalupe looking over the world (vintage globe) and a grave shrine all enclosed in barbed wire but I wanted to balance it out in “Die to Live” with the Buddha surrounded with flowers, candles and bright prayer flags. There is still the message of “think outside the religious box” with the cross made out of bullets above his head. One assemblage piece seems to complete the other.
I have been an artist in Vancouver for over 20 years.
Part of Framework series created in 2010. Used frames, salvaged items, found items, text are all part of this series of assemblage work.
Part of Framework series created in 2010. Old frames, music paper, rivets, words printed on transparency, clarinet horns and paper globe are all used to create this assemblage piece.
Found frame & siding, bullets, stone Buddha, silk flowers, wood heart, hand and beads.
19" X 22" 2010 Sold
recycled frame, glass beads, silk flowers, Madonna on antique cross, pearls...2010
found frame, metal and wood, doorknob, barbed wire, wooden sheep
Chinese shrine, Buddha, wood pattern, salvaged glass tiles, silver heart basket, bullet cross, silk prayer flags, stained glass flowers
Chinese shrine, Virgen de Guadalupe, vintage paper globe, wood pattern, barbed wire, bone skull, salvaged glass tiles, computer disk
“BIRTH OF JAZZ”
“ THE HEART OF THE MATTER”
“VIRGEN ON THE HALF SHELL”
“NEW ZEALAND LANDSCAPE”
“DIE TO LIVE”
“LIVE LIFE TO DIE”
