Artist Statement
Many people have told me that my work expresses love. Wow—such a powerful word! When I look out my window and see hawks circling in the sky, or when my husband and I share an adventure, or when I witness an act of kindness, I know with certainty that love is an available resource, despite my awareness of the struggles, suffering, and evil that exist in the world. Upon contemplating how people have understood my work, I recognize that I do crave beauty, harmony, and thoughtfulness, among the many other facets of love. As an extension of this, I seek to inspire empathy, both on a social level, between people, as well as in how we as a species relate with the planet and all she nurtures.
Undeniably, my work is content based. It is also highly refined, as an expression of my regard for the nature of the subject matter. All of my work is deeply researched, re-arranged, and presented as a new way of looking at the subject being studied. It is narrative in nature, tending towards theatrical settings. In this vein, I create tableaus describing situations that question our notions of history as well as our cultural and environmental values. These tableaus began as fabric paintings many years ago, have morphed into mixed media installations, and are now finding their way into my photographs. I frequently frame the content of my work within familiar settings, such as a campaign tent, a ladies’ lounge, or a temple hung with banners for a high-powered female evangelist. The ultimate goal is to create a gestalt for the viewer in order to consider the issue at hand.
My most current goal is to produce a series of 40 animal/human hybrid bronze sculptures mourning the extinction of animals on the planet. Click on Bronze Sculpture under "Laura's Gallery" above to see what I have accomplished thus far.
Many people have told me that my work expresses love. Wow—such a powerful word! When I look out my window and see hawks circling in the sky, or when my husband and I share an adventure, or when I witness an act of kindness, I know with certainty that love is an available resource, despite my awareness of the struggles, suffering, and evil that exist in the world. Upon contemplating how people have understood my work, I recognize that I do crave beauty, harmony, and thoughtfulness, among the many other facets of love. As an extension of this, I seek to inspire empathy, both on a social level, between people, as well as in how we as a species relate with the planet and all she nurtures.
Undeniably, my work is content based. It is also highly refined, as an expression of my regard for the nature of the subject matter. All of my work is deeply researched, re-arranged, and presented as a new way of looking at the subject being studied. It is narrative in nature, tending towards theatrical settings. In this vein, I create tableaus describing situations that question our notions of history as well as our cultural and environmental values. These tableaus began as fabric paintings many years ago, have morphed into mixed media installations, and are now finding their way into my photographs. I frequently frame the content of my work within familiar settings, such as a campaign tent, a ladies’ lounge, or a temple hung with banners for a high-powered female evangelist. The ultimate goal is to create a gestalt for the viewer in order to consider the issue at hand.
My most current goal is to produce a series of 40 animal/human hybrid bronze sculptures mourning the extinction of animals on the planet. Click on Bronze Sculpture under "Laura's Gallery" above to see what I have accomplished thus far.