Finding my artistic voice (2)

Last week I shared how a small piece of work on a piece of Khadi paper changed my perspective on my past and the way I approach making art.

There were two other small pieces that I created at L’Abri that have influenced future work.

The pieces were inspired by a description used by the US theologian Francis Schaeffer to describe the human condition: “Glorious ruins” - and by my desire to rescue some lovely crockery that had been hit by a stray volleyball from landfill.

I remember sitting on the lawn behind L'Abri, challenging myself to express the idea with whatever material was at hand. A piece of sketching paper and a cardboard became my canvases. I collected the crockery pieces and dropped them into wet acrylic paint, not minding that some grass and dirt also found their way onto the paintings. Life is messy and unpredictable a lot of the times, after all.

I am still on a rescue mission. Most of my work incorporates man-made or natural items that would generally be seen as useless and thrown away. I continue to show that our lives are complex and multi-layered. Challenges and pain do not negate the presence of beauty and hope. My work is also still born out of experiments and a playful, spontaneous working style.