Artist Statement- First draft

 Below is my first  official draft of my artist statement! The third paragraph mentions what I'm planning on doing next (I wasn't entirely sure if it should be included or not in the statement). Because of this I will probably be altering mine a lot throughout the next few months... So its not too long/short and so it actually is an accurate account of my work throughout the year.

"My work is a reflection of the difficulty that I have with transitions, and my attempt to deal with the lack of control in the world.  Such an apprehension of change comes from a fear of being torn from, and ultimately losing, those that are important to me.  I have come to a realization that while there are many things you cannot control, you can control the way that you think about and react to such unstable situations.

Throughout the creation of this work I have attempted to relinquish the control I had over both the materials and the process.  However, the work has become a process in and of itself.  The initial step consists of tea staining and splattering on muslin, and involves the least amount of direct contact by myself.  This is the uncontrollable event.  Then, I react in a variety of ways to the shapes that had been created on the muslin.  These reactions include tracings through by way of ink and thread, either directly on top of the stain or as a way of recreating mark on a different location.  Through this I am mimicking the process one may take in real life when reacting to a significant change in their environment.

A second stage of this work will focus more upon the idea of preserving the connections and relationships of those that are close to me.  The unstable nature of the world makes it impossible to constantly stay in close contact with everyone in your life at once.  There is a fear that an external source will create distance (either physical or metaphorical) between you and your loved ones.  In this second stage I hope to depict such connections that exist within my life and my desire to hold on to those who are important.  I plan to illustrate the hands of such people through the use of pencil, ink, and thread.  The process in this phase will be similar to the first, as I will be recreating the actual object on paper and muslin, just as was done with the tea stains.  My desire to is portray a significant level of intimacy and connection to those depicted, and in turn my longing to maintain and protect my relationships with those important to me, especially in the face of change. "