Relationships, as we know it, are something we continuously build with someone. Furthermore, we have a relationship with everything around us, from the spaces we dwell in, the items, organisms, and matter in this coalescence we call a life. My artwork is an introspection into various bonds, ties, and unions. We prove one's existence by validating another's, in other words, a relationship, a symbiosis. Through my body of work, I find each artwork increasingly more introspective as I slowly evaluate relationships from a broader perspective into a relationship with my own self.

I found the subject of links and bonds a naturally fascinating subject. With people we define our relationships by how we are connected to one another, be it familial, friendships, acquaintanceships or even by defining their identities in our perspectives. However, with non-human subjects we form our relationships objectively depending on the subject’s own nature. I wanted to showcase their involvement in our lives, how we interact and their significance in how we build our and each other's identities simultaneously. Additionally, I wanted to explore how the self would interpret connections and reciprocation.

My artworks seem to consist of three stages and two determining concepts. The three stages are the different layers of relationships one will have; relationships with the others and world, relationships with their environment, and the relationship with one’s self. Meanwhile, I deliver these three stages in either a fauvist approach, strident colours and unconstrained or a contrasting with a subdued, ethereal and calm atmosphere.

One of these artworks connected to relationships with others is one about family. “Circa 2006” is a 4-part cyanotype photography print series surrounding my upbringing, family, and past. Cyanotype is a photography printmaking process using ferric ammonium citrate and potassium ferricyanide to produce a rich prussian blue pigment. The method has been widely used by engineers in the 20th century, most notably to reproduce architectural drawings or blueprints. I thought cyanotype printmaking had a captivating history and felt it was a suitable medium as a homage to show gratitude to my lineage. In the four prints, I incorporated photographs from late 2006 of my two parents, my sister, my four grandparents and myself. My memories from this era are vivid.

To put simply, “7 Days of Un/Productivity” is a reversible 8-page zine about motivation, time, and work ethic. I consider it a picture book, consisting of two familiar yet contrasting narratives. Without a doubt, time management, deadlines, and schedules give us the power to have control over this complex and curious idea of time. The narrative follows the protagonist working diligently on schedule throughout their work and process. Despite their best efforts shown on one side of the zine, unfolding and reversing proves our hard work is only a possibility. The other half follows the same narrative, only with an unproductive attitude. The dichotomy between the two halves is a struggle many face with motivation. By this, my main reason for publishing this story as an 8-page zine was because the presentation is a common form of printed media, anyone could access. Between my artworks I find this one especially earnest. So, how is your relationship with work and productivity like?

I consider the last artwork as a connection between the self. “Absolute Terror” and its layers of tulle concealing an embroidered illustration, is a representation of the boundaries we build between each other. We construct an image in front of others as a representation of our identities, essentially sheltering our raw and unfiltered selves. However, as people engage with one another, the barrier between them thins, unveiling a clearer understanding of a person’s true nature. In this final piece, I would like to convey the direct effect we have against each other, as we try to desperately understand one another.

My study into life’s perpetual symbiosis had transformed my perspective of those around me. I believed understanding our various relationships from an anthropological standpoint would allow me to empathize with human needs and desires, in return understanding what people need the most from the spaces that define them. Yet, it helped me understand my connection to the world outside, my environment and most importantly, the self.

The Dream

Architectural Model (White cement,

chipboard, corrugated plastic sheets, bamboo)

21 cm x 33 cm x 24 cm

2020

Audrey

Oil on canvas

62 cm x 98 cm

2020