This work, rendered without the use of any paint, allows
chemistry to assume center stage. Changing color through
reaction, crystallization, fusing, and solidification are
a few of the ways chemistry informs this work. Chemistry
is sometimes the subject of my work, often its inspiration,
and always the method or means of its creation.
The dynamic process that forms my current work involves
copper, chemicals, and extreme heat. Light hits the copper
and cascades into a burst of fiery color
and then, just as suddenly, tapers off into cool serenity. Mood and thought
change as light and color shift rhapsodically. When the light
dims or strikes at certain
angles the color becomes saturated, majestic, and even reverential. Shifting
light on the copper surface and viewer movement are the kinesthetic forces
altering perception, allowing us to discover new and interesting
things each time we view
the work.
Many hours of research and experimentation has allowed
me to control and manipulate chemicals in order to create
these images. While biology and the environment
have influenced the subject of these works, it is the chemical interactions
that give full expression to the images.