Roots-
This work is relatively new. In the process of cleaning my garden last fall I pulled dead plants out of the soil and left them to dry. I was interested in the formation of abstract shapes the roots created as they overlapped and begat negative shapes. The roots freeform shapes don’t conform to a rectangular format as my previous work with cut paper had.
The root imagery is a continuation of the trees and electrical wire shapes I had used. Roots feed and nurture plants and trees. Invasive weeds have tenacious root systems below the surface. Roots are living forms hidden from view and we don’t usually notice them as we pull them out of the ground where they wither and die. In drawing the roots I am attracted to the idea of how they give strength to the plant and also the different meanings we give to the word and the metaphors they contain. We put down roots, we get to the root of all evil, we are rooted in place, our families are our roots…
I used the most interesting root forms to make cut out silhouettes of the images on black and white paper. A flat graphic quality appeared when the idea of space and overlap was deleted from the mix. Positive and negative shapes are all that matter. How to display the cut paper is always a dilemma. The shadows created by hanging the cut paper off the backing generate a second layer of visual interest. Most of the cut outs are a small scale from small plants but will grow as I will explore the roots of bushes and trees.
The cut outs became stencils to create the charcoal drawings. The immediacy and straightforwardness of working with charcoal appeals after the delicacy and exactness of the knife cut paper. Smearing charcoal on the surface of the textured paper creates a rich toned black. Slowly bringing out the image by subtracting (erasing) tone in the negative shapes keeps the image an abstract form for me. The interplay between 1,2 or 3 roots lead to more complex compositions. A sense of light is created behind the image which then creates space.
These images were the seeds of inspiration to produce a suite of small prints. I realized I had forgotten that when making prints; to let the medium work with me. The images don’t have to look like the drawing or painting which inspired them. They are what they are due to the print processes. Thinking about that concept freed me to experiment and become more abstract. The addition of color lent a more decorative quality to a few of the prints while in others it was a more subtle contrast.
The paintings are a continuation of the freedom to explore one concept/image/shape through many media. A whole series of paintings have evolved from the simple objective of adding color. Of taking the complex root shape and choosing a color for the figure and another one for the ground. Stand back, see what interactions take place. In another-make the root more three -dimensional. Let the image speak for itself and it turns into a living underwater creature or a static flat stylized symbol. Bring a group of insects onto the picture plane and see what happens. Push and pull space. Juxtapose ideas and hopefully entice the viewer to look closer. The conceptual ideas are what interest me but the physicality of the processes of cutting, erasing, printing and painting are also what keeps me going.
This work is relatively new. In the process of cleaning my garden last fall I pulled dead plants out of the soil and left them to dry. I was interested in the formation of abstract shapes the roots created as they overlapped and begat negative shapes. The roots freeform shapes don’t conform to a rectangular format as my previous work with cut paper had.
The root imagery is a continuation of the trees and electrical wire shapes I had used. Roots feed and nurture plants and trees. Invasive weeds have tenacious root systems below the surface. Roots are living forms hidden from view and we don’t usually notice them as we pull them out of the ground where they wither and die. In drawing the roots I am attracted to the idea of how they give strength to the plant and also the different meanings we give to the word and the metaphors they contain. We put down roots, we get to the root of all evil, we are rooted in place, our families are our roots…
I used the most interesting root forms to make cut out silhouettes of the images on black and white paper. A flat graphic quality appeared when the idea of space and overlap was deleted from the mix. Positive and negative shapes are all that matter. How to display the cut paper is always a dilemma. The shadows created by hanging the cut paper off the backing generate a second layer of visual interest. Most of the cut outs are a small scale from small plants but will grow as I will explore the roots of bushes and trees.
The cut outs became stencils to create the charcoal drawings. The immediacy and straightforwardness of working with charcoal appeals after the delicacy and exactness of the knife cut paper. Smearing charcoal on the surface of the textured paper creates a rich toned black. Slowly bringing out the image by subtracting (erasing) tone in the negative shapes keeps the image an abstract form for me. The interplay between 1,2 or 3 roots lead to more complex compositions. A sense of light is created behind the image which then creates space.
These images were the seeds of inspiration to produce a suite of small prints. I realized I had forgotten that when making prints; to let the medium work with me. The images don’t have to look like the drawing or painting which inspired them. They are what they are due to the print processes. Thinking about that concept freed me to experiment and become more abstract. The addition of color lent a more decorative quality to a few of the prints while in others it was a more subtle contrast.
The paintings are a continuation of the freedom to explore one concept/image/shape through many media. A whole series of paintings have evolved from the simple objective of adding color. Of taking the complex root shape and choosing a color for the figure and another one for the ground. Stand back, see what interactions take place. In another-make the root more three -dimensional. Let the image speak for itself and it turns into a living underwater creature or a static flat stylized symbol. Bring a group of insects onto the picture plane and see what happens. Push and pull space. Juxtapose ideas and hopefully entice the viewer to look closer. The conceptual ideas are what interest me but the physicality of the processes of cutting, erasing, printing and painting are also what keeps me going.
Julie Friedman
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