I’m happy to share some images from a group exhibit, “Working Our Way Home,” curated by my dear friend and fellow artist, Soude Dadras. The exhibit is in the Roswell Visual Arts Center in Roswell, Georgia through April 29, 2022
Installation of drawings, Roswell Visual Art Center
A series of events led to the development of this artwork. First, I was distressed last summer to read a news story about an extreme heat wave that killed millions of sea creatures during low tide on Kitsilano Beach in Vancouver. I started thinking about shells and how the shells that we see on the beach are just a hint of the life of creatures living in the ocean. This feels very generative to me. I started drawing shells and looking at how they influence fashion, design, architecture, etc.
Drawings on paper inspired by shells
Just like being in the flow of the ocean, my research and the experience of making sketches and drawings carried me to a place of excitement and delight in the endless variations of my source material. I found the Decorators Supply website to be a terrific source for looking at architectural mouldings based on shell shapes that are used as ornamentation in historic buildings. This book: Concophilia: Shells, Art, and Curiosity in Early Modern Europe is on my list of books to read for further research.
As I was drawing all the pieces that make up my paper installation, I felt very much in the creative flow of inspiration. The installation consists of about 30 paper cutout drawings of shells, architectural mouldings, acanthus leaves, delicate ribbons, and a few other hidden surprises pinned in place to the wall.