Blood Works :: Statement
Blood is a record keeper of our origins; predetermining our phenotypes and ancestral lineage linking us to a past that we may never experience but to which we are a part. While the idea of blood may conjure images of death and violence, it is the substance of life. From the moment of conception blood flows through our veins, transporting oxygen throughout the body in order to breathe, think, and grow. Blood allows the cells to position themselves into the jobs they will carry out until the host body no longer lives. This river of blood transports the capabilities of the animal throughout it’s entire life. At the moment of death, the energy of that animal still lives whether it is consumed by another or through decomposition it returns to earth.
Across the globe, blood has been used as a symbol. It connects people to their celestial maker. Catholics drink the blood of Christ and consume his body. The Aztecs bled themselves in rituals including human sacrifice in hopes to receive blessings from gods in agricultural and territorial conquests. In some African cultures blood tonics are fed to the weak and ill. Modern medicine uses the information contained within blood to understand our health and well-being. Chlorophyll, commonly known as plant blood, gives life to photosynthesis playing an essential role ensuring oxygen to animals. Blood is literally the fluid of life.
Painting with blood communicates the twin ideas of interior landscape and metaphysical connectivity. Using blood changes the act of painting because it enhances a seemingly neutral substance with conceptual properties. For the paintings, it serves as a metaphorical means to express the constant exchange of energy from one life to another. Every life and death is purposeful and blood is a record of that exchange. The versatility of the medium as a painting material allows for it to be used subtly or aggressively. While my paintings may be reminiscent of abstract expressionism, they also depict organic fluid, movement, and growth.
The rectangular pieces are scale replicas of microscopic slides. The painting becomes the specimen available for observation; magnifying that which is normally unseen. Throughout this work, another form is often utilized: the circle. The circle is representative of growth and continuity. It is reflected in the petri dish, the womb of a mother, or the cosmos itself. It exceeds the edges of the microscopic slide, encompassing the unknown knowledge that even science is currently unable to comprehend. These pieces ask the viewer to draw connections between science, art, and corporeal realities.
Blood is a record keeper of our origins; predetermining our phenotypes and ancestral lineage linking us to a past that we may never experience but to which we are a part. While the idea of blood may conjure images of death and violence, it is the substance of life. From the moment of conception blood flows through our veins, transporting oxygen throughout the body in order to breathe, think, and grow. Blood allows the cells to position themselves into the jobs they will carry out until the host body no longer lives. This river of blood transports the capabilities of the animal throughout it’s entire life. At the moment of death, the energy of that animal still lives whether it is consumed by another or through decomposition it returns to earth.
Across the globe, blood has been used as a symbol. It connects people to their celestial maker. Catholics drink the blood of Christ and consume his body. The Aztecs bled themselves in rituals including human sacrifice in hopes to receive blessings from gods in agricultural and territorial conquests. In some African cultures blood tonics are fed to the weak and ill. Modern medicine uses the information contained within blood to understand our health and well-being. Chlorophyll, commonly known as plant blood, gives life to photosynthesis playing an essential role ensuring oxygen to animals. Blood is literally the fluid of life.
Painting with blood communicates the twin ideas of interior landscape and metaphysical connectivity. Using blood changes the act of painting because it enhances a seemingly neutral substance with conceptual properties. For the paintings, it serves as a metaphorical means to express the constant exchange of energy from one life to another. Every life and death is purposeful and blood is a record of that exchange. The versatility of the medium as a painting material allows for it to be used subtly or aggressively. While my paintings may be reminiscent of abstract expressionism, they also depict organic fluid, movement, and growth.
The rectangular pieces are scale replicas of microscopic slides. The painting becomes the specimen available for observation; magnifying that which is normally unseen. Throughout this work, another form is often utilized: the circle. The circle is representative of growth and continuity. It is reflected in the petri dish, the womb of a mother, or the cosmos itself. It exceeds the edges of the microscopic slide, encompassing the unknown knowledge that even science is currently unable to comprehend. These pieces ask the viewer to draw connections between science, art, and corporeal realities.
Special thanks to Dana Rogers for documenting this event for me. Check out her work!
