My father was an archaeologist. He would travel to foreign countries and dig for relics of past civilizations. He would find things and look at them. He would figure out what they were and how they were used. The relics would be labeled and displayed, revealing just a little bit more of what it was like to be human in that time and in that place.
In some ways, I am like my father. I sort through dumpsters, my personal papers and possessions or things that I find on the street. I look for things that will reflect what it is like to be alive now, here. My sculptures are shrines to everyday life. They are reliquaries for the souvenirs of common experience and emotional life. I put very common or quirky or personal objects in a framework of respect. Note is given to things not usually noted.
My Love Letter Fountain is a good example of this. One day I was cleaning out my files and found love letters from a relationship that had long since ended. I did not know what to do with them. My inclination was to throw them away but they still held a great deal of power. I decided to make art out of them, art that reflected the pull that wouldn’t let me throw them away. The fountain is as much about my relationship as it is about memory. The letters are cut into 2 x 2 inch squares. You cannot read them but the tone carries. The composition parallels my way of processing memories. I go over things again and again but the meaning and the emotion doesn’t change.
Photos and press release for this artist.