The image Out of the Box is currently on display (through mid-May) as part of an Alumni Art Show at United Theological Seminary of the Twin Cities entitled "Thresholds of Transformation" - the writing below explains some of the motivation and meaning explored in this cutout.
Since my graduation from the Theology and Arts program at United Theological Seminary in the spring of 2005 I have continued to explore the intersections of art and theology through the creation of works of art both written and visual. Hand cut paper cutouts is a medium that I have returned to in several seasons of art making during that time. I enjoy the process of cutouts because I usually sketch out the image, then reverse it and draw it on the back of the paper that it will be cut out of and finally I cut the piece out, flip it over and mount it on a backing. By the end of this process I literally know the image backwards and forwards – yet I am still constantly surprised by the outcome when I step back to take a look at the finished product. Sometimes there are shapes that pop out visually in the cutout form that were not the focus of the initial composition. Likewise, the relationships between lines and negative spaces can take on new meaning in a sharp-edged cutout versus a blurry-lined sketch.
As I have worked on cutouts for the past several years I have always kept the compositions confined within an outer box – a frame of sorts that contains the composition. The box started as a utilitarian way to hold the pieces together – a binder of sorts that provided a structure for each element of the image to attach to and a way to define each line within a preset context. Recently, I have started to explore the idea of literally pushing the boundaries of that border to have lines that break the border and extend beyond the box. Initially this exploration was all about shrinking the box but still having it remain as part of the structure of the piece. Since then I have begun to realize that maybe the box itself is limiting the potential of the compositions. Perhaps the cutouts need to be free of the boundaries that the box has provided and open to the opportunity to be active, free-form compositions.
My approach to composition is currently on a threshold of transformation. I can see great potential in opening myself and my art up to this transformation and yet I still retain a warm spot in my heart for a composition cocooned within a box. This, to me, is a sign of healthy transformation – it is a transformation that respects its origins while being willing to step into the risky realm of the new. Echoes of past elements can be seen in the new creations, while the things learned through the openness to transformation have the potential to be introduced into revivals of the traditional form. Likewise, the lessons learned through this creative process can be applied to living a life that is aware of opportunities for growth and challenge that come with openness to transformation. I am just beginning to dive into the pool of borderless compositions and the cutout made for this show explores the beginning of that progression of transformation from the boxed composition at the top of the piece, to the space of re-construction in the in-between and finally pulls itself together in a small borderless composition at the bottom.
The box has been opened – may this transformation open even more.
