2012, Soft pastel and ink on mylar, 30"w x 42"h
In the 19th century, memorial photographs called “death portraits” were taken of the dead. I give this sub-genre a contemporary spin by drawing people who are playing dead. I ask people to share ideas of possible death scenarios and their afterlife. In the moment they imagine death, they seem altogether spiritual, tense, relieved and peaceful. I reflect on these ideas in highly rendered drawings made with ink and pastel, on layers of semi-transparent polyester——mediums somewhat forgotten in the contemporary high-art world. My process mirrors the subject matter in its residual nature, an incomplete remainder of a significant event. It invites audiences to share a solemn and intimate moment with the subject.
A Daimler Company
