artist statement at work......

Michele Ridgeway

Artist Statement

I  construct anecdotal narratives through video, performance art and sculpture which reveal universal themes of humanity that acknowledge that we are fleeting and changing beings.  The daily struggles, emotions, and situations of family, mothers, middle age, and home are the  text that I draw inspiration from.  The durational performances emphasize process, chance, time, endurance, and repetitive obsession to reinforce these themes.  

Through the medium of video I perform the everyday gesture that might occur in the home; icing a cake, wiping a mirror, nurturing with cooking, decorating and stitching.  The narratives conflate the line between  the practice of life and the practice of art and the domestic in terms of an aesthetic and a medium.  

My sculptural work is composed of materials in my home; icing, gingerbread, doilies, curtains, and mirrors. The mirror exists in the work as identity, stillness, a look into the now as well as reflection upon the past. The frosting sculptures speak to repetitive obsession in gesture and celebrations and are inspired by decorative elements in the home. The sewn pieces, constructed from household linens, recall stories from childhood and a desire to comfort and nurture. The objects that I make are similar to the video work in that they engage the domestic aesthetic in both size and material.  They reinforce the themes of endurance, process, and repetitive obsession in their construction. 

With this work, I depict a life that is lived through art.

a long lost horoscope

and a quote from an early horoscope; “work to link previously unlinked elements in your life that may help to inspire you to master the gritty details that will lead to your own monumental accomplishment”...Rob Brezny

works

work accepted to a show. yup. me. 

words listed

recently advised by my advisor to write a list of words regarding what I hope to elicit with the work installation.....

looking through notes, found this gem;

"self portrait-framing certain tasks with in activities for daily life"

"aesthetic that has a performative aspect"

"using domestic aesthetic as a bridge between humanity and narrative"

"acknowledges that we are fleeting and changing beings"

"celebrates and communicates the cyclical nature of humanity"

"honesty and poignancy"

"repetitive obsession"

words?

nurture *  memory *comfort *obsession *mother *celebration* ghost* past* look* watch *fear* grandmother *wisdom *thought *anxiety *overdone *try too hard *control *loss *life* fear *endurance* lack of control* trying too hard white* middle class* breakable *approachable *non approachable* white on white* very personal place*universal themes of humanity*we are fleeting and changingbeings*durationalperformances*process*chance*time*endurance*repetition*repetitive obsession*reassurance*been there done that*try as you might*can I hold your hand?*is that really how it was?*

shortcuts?

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): In May 2011, two Nepali men reached the top
of Mt. Everest after a six-week climb. Lakpa Tsheri Sherpa and Sano Babu
Sunuwar had prepared an unprecedented way to get back down off the
mountain. Strapping themselves to a single parachute, they leaped off
and paraglided for 45 minutes, landing near a Sherpa village thousands of
feet below the summit. I suggest you look around for a metaphorical
version of a shortcut like that, Taurus. Don't do the next part of the
journey the same way you did the previous phase. Take a more direct
route. Enjoy an alternate adventure. Give yourself a fresh challenge.

And Do It With Love, For Yourself.....

TAURUS

 "The fact that someone else loves
you doesn't rescue you from the project of loving yourself,"
writes blogger Sahaj Kohli. Nothing else rescues you from that
quest, either, I would add. Sooner or later, whether it's now or
20 years in the future, you will have to master this fine art. It's
not enough to merely feel affection for yourself; not enough to
seek pleasure and avoid pain. You've got to make extensive
investigations to discover what it means to love yourself; you
have to develop rigorous plans for how to accomplish it; and
you must fire up a deep commitment as you actually carry out
those plans. By the way, the coming weeks will be an excellent
time to work on mastering this fine art.

Just, You Know, Do IT.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): What is the single best thing you could do to
fulfill your number one desire? Is there a skill you should attain? A subject
you should study? A special kind of experience you should seek or a shift
in perspective you should initiate? This is a big opportunity, Taurus. You
have an excellent chance to identify the specific action you could take
that will lead you to the next stage of your evolution. And if you do
manage to figure out exactly what needs to be done, start doing it!