Exhibition Photo & Statement

Hoodoos1-5.jpg

Installation of Silent Messengers: Hoodoos I to V (left to right)

Artist’s Exhibition Statement

For some years now, my work has been informed by and engaged with the contrasts and tension between connections in the ancient marks made by early humans, (particularly in the areas of my ethnic roots in northern Europe), in Nature’s own mark-making and shape-making (such as the Hoodoos), and in my own use, as a modern human, of new technologies in image making.

The “Silent Messengers” series of prints are the most recent works, the culmination of experiments and research into combining traditional and digital printmaking techniques on paper and mylar as evidenced in the “Nexus” prints also shown here. I have desired to exploit the effect of layering transparent materials to embody a concept of time and continuity of humans and nature.

Referencing ancient rock art in a modern way is my way of acknowledging this long thread of connection with those humans and artists of long ago.

Much of my research is by way of the internet and books, virtual travel in the comfort of my chair. One of many inspiring researchers for me has been Pekka Kivikäs, a keen documenter and author of books on Finnish rock art aimed at readers interested in the ancient culture of Finno-Ugric regions. Kivikäs considers rock art “the silent message of man from behind the thousands of years”. Recently rereading about him and his work, I was struck by that phrase, considering that my current print series is titled “Silent Messengers”.

Silent Messengers
Studio Art Gallery at Capilano College
North Vancouver, BC, Canada
November 16th – December 7th, 2005

Note: In the archives under PrintWorks – Silent Messengers, you may view closer photos of Silent Messengers: Hoodoos I, Silent Messengers: Hoodoos II and Silent Messengers: Hoodoos III. Proper photos of Hoodoos IV and V will be posted later when I’ve taken slides of all the latest new work.

November 22, 2005 in Being an Artist, Finland, Estonia & Finno-Ugric, Recent Exhibitions, Silent Messengers by Marja-Leena