Two artists transform modern digital photography into unique textured objects by using ancient art processes. Cécile Trentini uses a rubric to record moments on her daily walks and then quilts those images into elaborate textile artwork. Stephen Murphy screenprints his bold photographic imagery to create lush encaustic paintings. In distinct directions, these artists depart from deterministic structures into unpredictable results.
Exhibition runs July 1 – July 27.
Join us for First Saturday Receptions
June 1, 5-8pm and July 6, 5-8pm.
Stephen Murphy’s thoughts on his work:
“Long intrigued and a sometimes practitioner (and teacher) of alternative process photography, it occurred to me that my pleasure working with the unpredictability and vagaries of the photo-silkscreen encaustic process struck the same joyful chords.”
“Risk-taking, experimentation, and general messiness are part of the process. ‘Letting go’ of the image (‘ego’ for a photographer) and nurturing its transformation via the encaustic medium is both exhilarating and scary. Unexpected shifts and outcomes happen. Control is a silent conversation– sometimes a duel– between the artist and materials using fire (the torch), beeswax, and tree resin in the alchemy of the medium.”
“Imagery is locally-sourced, an homage to my adopted city.”
Cécile Trentini’s thoughts on this body of work:
“The starting point for the Daily Walking Series was a very pragmatic intent: I wanted to do something for my fitness. Therefore, in the summer of 2014, I decided to go walking every day for at least half an hour and to link this exercise routine with an art project. During the daily walk, I take a picture according to a pre-defined theme, which I keep up for 100 consecutive days. The photos taken over these three months are then assembled in chronological order in a textile piece; days on which I don’t walk show as blanks.”
“This simple idea led to a large series of work that, over time, experienced an extensive development as much in concept as in form and content. In addition to the chronological pieces, I started to work on what I call “parallel pieces” that are not bound by a time frame, for which I collect, whenever there is an opportunity, photos or objects on a given theme, until I have found 100 of them. I also started a series of chronological pieces that span a whole year. On the formal level, there is a development towards a more abstract expression as well as an expansion of the techniques going from simply printing photos on fabric to more sophisticated procedures, such as blueprint, or other textile techniques I had so far rarely used, such as stitching.”
“To date, the project has been going on for over five years, i.e. more than 1500 days, and counts over 20 pieces. What originally was the intent (walking) became the source of inspiration for the art project which ultimately is a meditation on perception: what do I see? Why do I see it? What is triggered by what I see? Does my perception change over time? Or does the environment change? Would another person on the same walk see the same things I do? What is coincidence, what is me? What do the pieces trigger in the viewers? Do they see what I saw? Do they have the same thoughts?”