Statement
Disability:
I have retrolental fibroplasia in both eyes. As a result I am blind in my right eye and my left eye is in jeopardy of sight loss. If I lift heavy objects, such as the stones I use to sculpt, I risk losing sight in my left eye due to too much pressure, which could cause a detached retina.
I use my one-eyed perception of the world to my advantage by channeling it into my sculptures showing my unique perspective of objects people see every day. In my initial abstract pieces one can see how the interaction between my nose and cheekbones assumes magnified importance since I am seeing it at such a close range.
The striking element of my works is that I create American consumer products that are icons of our pop culture, yet viewers would never suspect that these are replicas and not the actual items I set out to duplicate. Viewers are stunned, even more so, upon learning that a semi-blind woman is the creator of these sculptures. I compensate for my imbalanced vision when I do my work, by working from a 3D object to create these duplicates, as opposed to a flat image, such as a photograph. When I look at a 3D object, my vision confuses me as to what is concave and convex. I use a straight edge, line it up against the object and use the negative space (air space) in between to compensate for my vision impairment. I tend to look at the shadows within the negative space of the material to achieve the correct movement of the creases.
Art gave me strength to survive the torment I underwent growing up with peers who not only laughed at me but physically hit me to the point of breaking my eyeglasses when I was six years old. I turned to art for solace. I transfer my thoughts and ideas into forms made from solid stone.
I use a mass array of sharp and powerful tools such as 7-inch diamond blades and high-powered air hammers, to chisel away and eliminate my stress, anxiety, frustration or anger. These emotions vanish as they are infused into the rock.
My abstract pieces depict the waves of thoughts moving through my mind. I sit in front of the stone, shut my eyes and meditate before starting the art process. I think of the form I need to create to transfer feelings of tranquility and balance onto these works, as well. Taking dead and dull stone and carving it into life form is an expression of how I bring my right eye to life via my creations.
|
