Color Wheels
View a slideshow of my color wheels images here and scroll down to read the Artist Statement for this work.
ARTIST STATEMENT - COLOR WHEEL SERIES
These color wheels are a selection from a practice I’ve developed over the past 5 years. The color wheel is foundational to artistic practice; it’s one of the few things in art that has a “right way” to do it. Colors are arranged in order by the spectrum, showing their relationships to each other. The color wheel sets a certain structure and expectations while at the same time allowing for some play and variation within that structure.
As a teaching artist, I often make color wheels when introducing a new material for exploration. It is a way to explore beside other makers while also modeling something about color mixing and color relationships. I found my teaching studio, Art at the Center, quickly filled with color wheels in different media: chalk, tempera, watercolor, pastel and crayon.
This series is more about arranging found colors rather than mixing new colors. I begin with a material and a seek a range of colors in that material. Generally, I’ve made it my goal to work with materials I have on hand rather than purchase new material. The quilling paper came from a collection of my grandmother’s supplies that she passed along when she downsized. The stamps were from my childhood stamp collection.
The sorting and arranging process has a meditative quality. It requires a focus that takes me away from my thoughts and pulls me into the moment with the materials at hand - their colors as well as their tactile qualities.
As I look back on this series, I am also aware how central this meditative process has been to my prayer practice. Several of these were made at times of concern for people I love. The act of making helped me move from fear, frustration and sadness to a place of presence and trust. The button color wheel was first arranged on my desk on a day when I waited on news of important medical test results for the health of a friend. I was in that place where there was nothing to do - I just had to be with the waiting. It began as a mindless play with a bin of buttons. As I set some intention to the play and arranging, I noticed it helped my mind and emotions to calm. At first this was only ephemeral art, something created just for a moment and recorded only in a photo. I saved the chosen buttons in a cup and found myself returning to them as a practice for connection and calm. It was several weeks before I chose to sew them to canvas to create a record of this practice.
The process varies a bit with each piece; what is consistent is how the materials create a space for me to engage in a contemplative practice.
My family has been part of the process too. My kids first gave me the idea for the lego color wheel and they have been accommodating when a color wheel takes up most of the space on our kitchen table. I have also enjoyed when others are inspired and send me images of color wheels they create. I’ve received images of color wheels made from breakfast cereal, jello, paper, and candy. I invite you to imagine what you might use to create a color wheel too.
These color wheels are a selection from a practice I’ve developed over the past 5 years. The color wheel is foundational to artistic practice; it’s one of the few things in art that has a “right way” to do it. Colors are arranged in order by the spectrum, showing their relationships to each other. The color wheel sets a certain structure and expectations while at the same time allowing for some play and variation within that structure.
As a teaching artist, I often make color wheels when introducing a new material for exploration. It is a way to explore beside other makers while also modeling something about color mixing and color relationships. I found my teaching studio, Art at the Center, quickly filled with color wheels in different media: chalk, tempera, watercolor, pastel and crayon.
This series is more about arranging found colors rather than mixing new colors. I begin with a material and a seek a range of colors in that material. Generally, I’ve made it my goal to work with materials I have on hand rather than purchase new material. The quilling paper came from a collection of my grandmother’s supplies that she passed along when she downsized. The stamps were from my childhood stamp collection.
The sorting and arranging process has a meditative quality. It requires a focus that takes me away from my thoughts and pulls me into the moment with the materials at hand - their colors as well as their tactile qualities.
As I look back on this series, I am also aware how central this meditative process has been to my prayer practice. Several of these were made at times of concern for people I love. The act of making helped me move from fear, frustration and sadness to a place of presence and trust. The button color wheel was first arranged on my desk on a day when I waited on news of important medical test results for the health of a friend. I was in that place where there was nothing to do - I just had to be with the waiting. It began as a mindless play with a bin of buttons. As I set some intention to the play and arranging, I noticed it helped my mind and emotions to calm. At first this was only ephemeral art, something created just for a moment and recorded only in a photo. I saved the chosen buttons in a cup and found myself returning to them as a practice for connection and calm. It was several weeks before I chose to sew them to canvas to create a record of this practice.
The process varies a bit with each piece; what is consistent is how the materials create a space for me to engage in a contemplative practice.
My family has been part of the process too. My kids first gave me the idea for the lego color wheel and they have been accommodating when a color wheel takes up most of the space on our kitchen table. I have also enjoyed when others are inspired and send me images of color wheels they create. I’ve received images of color wheels made from breakfast cereal, jello, paper, and candy. I invite you to imagine what you might use to create a color wheel too.