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"Gathering Effects/Affects: Transimpressions* with Fishing Nets" Exhibition
Emergency Exit Gallery Exhibition @ The Collective on Depot
Opening & Reception: May 7th, 2010, 7pm - until...
Additional Viewing: May 14th 7pm-until... and by appointment.
I will be exhibiting a new exhibition in May in the Emergency Exit Gallery at the Collective on Depot. The exhibition will open on Friday, May 7th at 7pm- Until. The exhibition with feature a new series of transimpressions of gathered fishing nets. The work continues the "Going South Series" that is documenting the American shrimping industry.
*"Transimpression” is a fashioned term created to describe the technique used for this body of work. Each piece is a unique transfer impression of fishing nets combined with acrylic ink media.
For a preview of images please visit my Picasa Site for a sampling.ARTIST STATEMENT
Gathering Effects/Affects is an exhibition of new work that continues a larger series entitled Going South. The work documents a utilitarian object used by the fishing industry to capture essential characteristics of the object, including repetition, geometric shapes, and simplistic detail using composition, implied depth and fleeting movement.The effect of gathering objects affects the sentimental side of the mind. I gather items during a significant event or moment that will remind me of why that particular moment had importance, whether it was pivotal or just a fond memory. In this body of work I gathered pieces of fishing nets from multiple people and places from the Southeast United States including southeast LA, Savannah, GA, and Oriental, NC. Each piece of fishing net serves as a reminder of a culture and lifestyle that is being threatened on many levels. This exhibition takes on new significance as the Gulf of Mexico oil spill events continue to unfold.
The Going South Seriesrevolves around coastal issues which includes the documentation of land and culture loss due to changes in the environment, economic concerns and the practice of importing and farming seafood products from other countries.
I am employing a distinctive technique to create this body of work called transimpression. This fashioned term, created to describe the technique, means that each piece is a unique transfer impression of fishing nets that have been combined with acrylic ink media and “printed” on paper that is then mounted on wood and sealed.
Exhibition Postcard
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Going South: The American Shrimping Industry Series
The Going South Series will investigate the American shrimping industry, as well as the natural and un-natural influences that threaten the culture, lives and careers of those who have dedicated themselves to the trade. The body of work will result in a group of visual images that combine photography and collage.This idea has grown from a personal, on-going project that investigates and documents land and culture loss in Southeastern Louisiana. This project is in association with the Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium (LUMCON) located in Cocodrie, LA, whose primary purpose it to conduct research and lead educational programs in the marine sciences. Over the past three years, while taking courses at LUMCON, I have had the opportunity to engage in many conversations with local shrimpers. Through this dialogue I have gained an awareness of the forces at work, natural and human-made, that are affecting the industry in this region in many harmful ways. Some of the influences are land loss (due to hurricanes, channeling, and other environmental issues), government sanctions, shrimp farming and importing. My research interest and project aim is to demonstrate if these same issues affect other regions as well.
I am proposing three areas of focus, which include: Wilmington, NC, Savannah, GA and Cocodrie, LA. Each of these large shrimping areas is connected with a major industry. The proposal is comprised of two primary forms of research. The first is field research where I plan to document, utilizing digital photography, the current state of the shrimping industry including culture, marinas, lifestyle, and the product itself. The second form of research is conducting three interviews with individual shrimpers representing each area. The purposes of the interviews are self-education and the introduction of a first-person voice into a visual conversation. The body of work that will result is a series of visual images that combine photography and collage. The photography will be used for documentation and creative interpretation and the collage works will present a culmination of field research, documentation and interview material from the three coastal shrimping areas.
This page will document the scouting trips and present the research that is carried out.
ENTRIES
Entry: October 3, 2009: New Work Completed.
Below is an image of the new work that was just completed. It is currenlty titled "Fresh Seafood" Study #1 Going South Series. It is 19.5"h x 22"w and is a collage utilizing pen, ink, rub-on letters, and original drawings. This is actually the second study, but the first was unsuccessful.
Entry: October 3, 2009: Update on progress.
I just completed a grant proposal for partial funding of this project. I should here within two weeks whether or not I will have this project backed by a research grant. Two collage studies have been completed based on imagry from Louisiana and Georgia. Image to come soon.
Entry August 9, 2009: Field Research for Going South Series: Savannah, Georgia
The first scouting trip, where it did not go as planned, served as a test run for the research trips to come. I was able to make a contact with Michael Sullivan, a local shrimper and shrimp boat owner, visit one of the marinas on the Savannah River and visit many local shrimping areas. Below you will see some of the images that resulted from the July 2009 trip.
Currently I am working on a funding opportunity, interview plans and studio research for the the style of imagery to be portrayed.
