When I make my work, I’m often inches away from it—both literally and figuratively. It’s hard to see a full picture of what it is I’m doing, or trying to do, while I’m doing it. Gathering work for a show or a website update affords a chance to see things in a broader context.
I’ve begun to notice a trend in the direction of my work. It’s a branching that has been happening for several years. In one direction, the work has become layered, nuanced, and complex—and often just complicated. The Unholy and Ara series derive from a single point and extend forward, reaching with each piece toward some unseen conclusion. It is multilevel patterning—subtle shifts in approach that verge on insanity. I’m looking for new patterns, surprises, and methods for creating the work. It is equal parts intuition and alchemy.
In the other direction, I’m working toward simplification. I want these pieces (the Omoplata, S&S&S&S, and Some Caterpillars Stay Caterpillars series) to be simple—which is not as easy to pull off as that word would imply. I want to find a preexisting shape that hasn’t been found. I want it to be obvious, like: “How did we all miss this?”
I need this balance of (over)production and ambience. They inform each other. Aphex Twin made Selected Ambient Works and the Richard D. James Album at the same time. Makes sense to me.
I’ve been thinking about circles a lot lately. There are two ways to render a circle. The first is to take a square and measure points, equal distances apart, along the edges, and then connect those points with a series of straight lines until an arc is formed. This is mirrored four times, and with a few thousand lines, a circle is achieved:
The other way is to pick up a pencil / pen / brush and draw a circle.
1 line = 10,000 lines. Both are valid. Each gets to be a circle, and both involve practice.
Thanks for reading. I’d love to hear your thoughts.
m
"The other way is to pick up a pencil / pen / brush and draw a circle." <<insert mind-blown emoji>>
The build up to this line really earns the payoff you get when you read it.