Deconstructed Landscape with Water, Forests, Wilderness, Mountains, Sky; According to Thomas Cole, Post consumer recycled materials and paint, 2022
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"Every moment instructs, and every object; for wisdom is infused into every form. It has been poured into us as blood; it convulsed us as pain; it slid into us as pleasure; it enveloped us in dull, melancholy days, or in days of cheerful labor; we did not guess its essence until after a long time." - Ralph W Emerson in his essay Nature, published in 1836. In his essay, Emerson articulates humankind’s unavoidable relationship to the natural world. In wanting to feel this connection I disassemble familiar cultural milieus and rebuild the ideas. I was challenged to use primarily post consumer recycled materials for this body of work. The primary inspiration for this work are the paintings of Thomas Cole, the founder of the Hudson River School, a contemporary of Emerson, and arguably the quintessential American Romantic Landscape painter. Cole’s paintings rely on symbolism to convey ideas in a self-invented framework by utilizing five necessary components needed to paint a distinctly American landscape: water, mountains, sky, forest and wilderness. Each one of these elements bears meaning in Cole’s depictions of the majesty of the American landscape. Mountains convey the fortitude of the human spirit, forests convey courage or immortality, sky is the soul of “man”. etc. |
Wildness; According to Thomas Cole, Post consumer found and natural objects, concrete, paint, 2022
Waterfall; According to Thomas Cole, Post consumer, recycled materials, rebar, concrete, paint, 2022
Mountains; According to Thomas Cole (Purple Mountain Majesty), Post consumer materials, flex seal, saw dust, acrylic paint, recycled newspaper, 2022
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Sky; According to Thomas Cole (Winged Victory of Samothrace), Post consumer recycled materials, paint, 2022
Forests; According to Thomas Cole, Reclaimed wood, recycled cardboard, paint, 2022
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