Monday, December 8, 2008

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SHIFTING SANDS, MULTIPLE READINGS




















My intrigue began essentially with a two dimensional observation. It was the depth and the subtlety of these paintings within the estuary sediments that drew me in. The challenge is to represent what I am seeing and maintain it's integrity, while figuring out why these formations feel so compelling in order to articulate sensible connections by hand.



























A search for the most unique and dynamic forms and reigning those in with a camera was a good start. I'm striving to place emphasis on the motion and energies that are at work by gently guiding the image away from an immediately identifiable context.

















































Sharp sweeping gestures suspended like confident calligraphic assertions, diverse unfathomed landscapes waiting to be discovered, continuously washed away and renewed. Basically, the elements found within these specific microcosms and the visual parallels exisiting in vast spaces vary most significantly in the duration and subsequent accumulation of formation and erosion.
































Another task is to nurture the merging of nature's gestures and my own, which differs from direct emulation. I believe the action can be more of a synthesis.

































A means of digging deeper into this collaboration was to capture the negative space contained within the sculpted sands. For me, this is where the concentration of energy lies. The sand itself is the passive/reactive element in the equation. The key stages that make up the water cycle are all in action at the estuary and ultimately influence how the sediment coalesces. The motions of the water coursing outward from the drainage gather momentum from the shape of the surrounding landforms. Rain feeds the river current flowing out to sea and merges with ocean currents and tides, simultaneously; shifting pressures create winds that interact with accumulating water vapors generating powerful waves that weave their gesture within the relative energies. All of these forces vary in strength and direction but operate as a unified fluidity.






































flowpattern casts/carvings






































The main thing I hope to add to all of this is a unique perception and an ability to play. Through capturing a general form and elaborating on it's most unique qualities I am able to create a kind of simultaneity as I layer my observations of the ever changing place with my own turbulent subconscious inclinations. I can use this information to imagine the finest pathways when detailing the cast of the active negative space.



















































I can also choose to act on the image in order to intensify the energy and motion and/or manipulate the image using congruent patterns, which tend to be noticeably more isloated, and static, contained in the digital realm. These means of translation can open up a field of different meanings that I am constantly sorting through.




















































The difference between the hand manipulated object and digital layering of various viewpoints is pretty immense, it is the evolution that occurs when the ideas pass through different realms and media that keeps me compelled to experiment.
















































-Matthew Paul Bower

EARLIER PHOTOS BELOW


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4 comments:

akmonki said...

Amazing post Matt. I'm glad to hear & see that you haven't completely disappeared off the face of this earth. This is a beautiful post and your pictures so captivating. I love how you notice those little things like erosion, natures way of slow movement, and create art from it.
I love that delta looking picture with the rivers seeping out from the upper corner.

Unknown said...

WOW!!!! I have to look up all the words but my eyes need no words and what you are creating and capturing in image touches my heart. Gotta get up to Sitka Center to see it in person

Anonymous said...

I totally get what you're saying here, the world is so brimming with fascinating patterns and processes that goes on without humans, and I like your unique approach to recording and playing with them. What materials are your carvings and castings? They are really gorgeous and I could see them equally interesting in wood and sand/limestone and clay. Great insight--your focus and knowledge is eye-opening for me as I tend to be likewise fascinated by the build-up and erosion of rock-beds and mountains, but so often forget about how much water has a part in so many of the world's cycles. I'm really interested to hear and see more of your findings and work!

Anonymous said...

Bow, great stuff that I had not yet seen. I'm inspired, Really man.
-Lathan