Making artwork is the process of searching for meaning in many cases. In looking for the relationship between the artist and their paintings, a conversation is brought up about searching for meaning with the audience interaction.
We used to say everything has a purpose in existence and every decision has its intention. I find the meaning of daily life is hardly noticed and meanings are hidden by countless little things in our lives. Daily rituals pass through our life and are left with no visible trace.
In response to the overlooked meaning of daily life, I seek to use the process of painting to determine the meaning of objects I encounter on a daily basis.
The Pallet
90 x 100 inches
I utilize large-scale paintings for an intended purpose. Firstly, I zoom in on small objects to find their personal importance. Secondly, I present the experience that I had with those objects or surroundings. Thirdly, the large dimensions activate space to explore and create paintings.
Dodo
80 x 80 inches
The giant painting, titled Dodo, references my intimacy with my dog, Dodo. The giants size depicts my view of him in my daily life. When I lay down on the floor reading a magazine, Dodo will sit very close to me. The closer distance makes him seem giant in my perspective which shows our intimacy. When I painted him, I was not relying on a photograph but instead, processing an impression of Dodo. In the image, I purposely left the face white. However, the painting has a sense of completeness. His facial expression is a little melancholy and this is how I think of him. The picture turned out to express “a dog wearing autumn leaves.” The autumn leaf-like coat seems funny to me, and that is his true “dog-nality”. He is funny like a comedian. I deal with former questions about construction and deconstruction in my practice.
For instance, in the painting Dodo, the body is a solid form that is delineated by a clear-cut edge with the background. Meanwhile, the face is left white and has a blurry, spacial
experience with the white background. The fur is painted in a determined way with clear
and expressive brush strokes. I allow chance operation through drip marks in the left corner of the painting. This decision breaks down the formal construction of painting.
Most of my recent paintings utilize the application of at least two kinds of media. The dog painting is comprised of watercolor and oil, whereas the Garden painting is watercolor with sand paste. I explore how the materials collaborate and create an unpredictable outcome.
I use some materials to form a painterly structure, and other materials are used to break down the composition.
The Garden
80 x 80 inches
For instance, the painting My apartment garden is based on a study I did of pink flowers that only bloom in September. I started the image with watercolor and noticed dripping occurring from the accidental gravity in my painting process.
The landscape
80 x 80 inches
It is interesting to think of the process of painting as both a constructed process and a deconstructed process, which is shown in the dripping of paint. The image presents a delicate connection between structure and deconstruction, which indicates order and chaos.
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