Steve Irwin once said, “I believe our biggest issue is the same biggest issue that the whole world is facing, and that’s habitat destruction” (1). I grew up in a rural area. There wasn’t much to do besides be outside with nature. Because of this I was always around animals, whether it be my pets or the wild deer, moose, bear, rabbits, birds, etcetera I grew up seeing almost every day. Like many people my age, I grew up watching Steve Irwin educate people on animals. This, paired with my environment growing up and the animals I interacted with, cultivated a love for animals. A common theme and the overall purpose of my art is to bring awareness to issues that animals are facing. Climate change is an issue that affects every living thing on this planet. One result of climate change and human impact is the displacement of animals from their habitats. I represent these animals in the hopes that my work will influence more people to care about and help them in any way they can.
The main subjects of my pieces are animals. Recently I have been focusing on threatened, endangered, or extinct animals within North America. My color palette usually consists of black, white, greys, browns and tans, oranges, golds, and blues. My backgrounds are generally simple, with flat color or some texture and color variation. My subjects tend to be painted in an illustrative style, without departing too much from nature. This illustrative style comes partly from my graphic design background and is something I have been including in my painting and drawing styles. I include human elements interacting with the animals I depict. These objects can vary, from more subtle ropes and wires, to daggers and jewelry. One common element is the absence of detail in the eyes. I will usually portray the animal’s eye with solid white, or white with some slight grey variation in order to create form. This gives the animal a ghostly or empty look. This look conveys how some humans see animals, as empty “things” that can be used for profit or discarded. The International Union for Conservation of Nature has concluded that extinction rates are accelerating. They studied 4,588 species and found that, as of 2021, twenty-five percent are “classified as threatened with extinction” and this recent period of extinction of mammals is “proceeding much more rapidly than has been normal for millions of years” (2). Many people have heard of the recent (in geologic terms as the Earth is about 4.54 billion years old) ice age extinction event, which occurred around 12,000 years ago. This extinction event involved megafauna like wooly mammoths and wooly rhinos. What some may not know is this ice age extinction was due to two primary things: climate change and humans. In fact, although there are a few exceptions, “all of the well-documented mammal extinctions of the last 5,000 years or so can be traced to human activities” (3). This is not just happening to mammals either. Our current geological epoch, the Holocene, has seen the extinction of over 520 types of birds. Most other types of life, from frogs to crocodiles to snails, are all facing similar fates. We are currently experiencing another mass extinction and yet again, it is our fault. This is an important topic that more people should know about, and therefore it is basis for my art. One of the main human-produced causes of this extinction is habitat destruction. Natural habitats are destroyed in order to make room for agriculture, industrialization and construction, recreation, and more. There are a few different types of habitat loss. Habitat degradation occurs when the habitat is still technically intact, but it is not able to function as it should. This forces species to migrate or die. Habitat fragmentation involves the separation of habitats which causes difficulties in mating, communication, and acquisition of food. Habitat destruction is the most extreme and means that the habitat can no longer support species. Some causes of habitat loss fossil fuel harvesting, deforestation, urbanization, logging, mining, creation of dams, and pollution, just to name a few. This is all causing irreversible damage. Michael MacCally discusses this in his book Life Support: The Environment and Human Health. MacCally states “while species stocks may recover following mass-extinction events over the course of millions of years of evolution and may fill in ecosystem niches that had once been occupied, it must be understood that these replacing species are new ones and that the unique information encoded by the DNA of the lost species is gone forever” (4). One of my biggest influences is tattoos. Evidence of tattoos are found as far back as 5000 BCE Japan, where figurines were found to have painted and engraved marks representing tattoos. A preserved man, known as “Otzi the Iceman”, who died around 3300 BCE, was discovered to have multiple tattoos all over his body. Despite the long history tattoos have, they are still considered taboo in some places. For example, some Christians criticize tattoos for being a “sin”. Some people still associate tattoos with old stereotypes, like European sailors in the 1700s who would come back from world travels with new tattoos from other cultures and were looked down upon. Women specifically may be labeled as “promiscuous”. In the United States this stems, in part, from the 1933 book Tattoo: Secrets of a Strange Art by Albert Perry, which connected the act of being sexually promiscuous to having tattoos. Although in recent years they have become more accepted by American society and the art world, there is still resistance to calling them “fine art” or presenting them in museums and galleries. There is a difficulty here in how tattoos can be displayed. Similar to street art, the action of creating a piece is important and not something all viewers can experience. There are some parts of tattooing that can easily be presented in a gallery, like tattoo flash sheets (a grouping of pre-made designs usually on a poster or in a book that can be chosen and tattooed quickly). Japanese American artist Takahiro Kitamura said, “I think a lot of the general public considers us artists, but I don’t think the fine art world knows what to do with us” (8). Part of this is due to what happens to a tattoo once it is done. It is more closely associated with the person wearing the tattoo than the artist. Click here to see one of my tattoos by artist Heather Jusczyk I like to reference tattoos in my more traditional painting pieces. One thing that draws me to including tattoo imagery in my work is that I have tattoos myself. After experiencing a tattoo artist working firsthand, it is difficult for me to not associate tattooing with fine art. Something else that draws me to it relates to the history of tattooing that I briefly discussed. Tattoo imagery has not been represented in museums and galleries for very long. This is why I think the utilization of tattoo styles and subjects provide a freshness to my paintings. I paint in a clean, illustrative style that is present in a lot of tattoo styles. One form of art that I have looked to for inspiration is woodblock prints, specifically in the Ukiyo-e style. Prints in this style typically include neutral colors, with an emphasis on beiges, browns, black, white, and grey, with the occasional pop of color. One reason I gravitate towards this color palette is because it has a timeless feel, as neutral colors have always been used in art, either as the focus or to enhance the louder colors. Ukiyo-e is a great example of this, as it originated in the early 1700s, but it feels like it could both fit in today and long before the 1700s. Another interesting theme within this style is many pieces will not have formal foregrounds, middle grounds, and backgrounds. I like to utilize this within my own pieces. The indistinctness of the area around the animal illustrates the issue of their displacement. Click the links below to see a couple Ukiyo-e examples: Toshusai Sharaku 1794, Kabuki Actor Otani Oniji III as Yakko Edobei, woodblock print Tomioka Eisen 1904, Beauty and Puppies, book illustration Ukiyo-e is cited as being an influence on the Art Nouveau movement, which I have looked at a lot when creating my own art. Art nouveau is characterized by artists like Aubrey Beardsley, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Gustav Klimt, and Alphonse Mucha. Art nouveau aimed to be an art that felt appropriate to “modern” (late 1800s, early 1900s) times. This is something that I try to accomplish when incorporating graphic design and tattoo art in my work. At the beginning of the art nouveau movement, Charles Darwin published his sixth edition of Origin of the Species, discussing evolution. It was affordable and contained illustrations, unlike his previous editions. This is part of what influenced the artists of art nouveau to include nature as an integral part of the movement. My own journey mirrors this, as part of my passion for creating art about nature comes from an interest in evolution and animal science. Style wise, art nouveau prints have always been appealing to me. I enjoy the flat planes of color that are arranged and shaped in ways that move the eye throughout the piece and as a result I try to emulate that in my own work, which you can see examples of above. Click below to see a couple Art Nouveau examples: Aubrey Beardsley 1894, The Dancers Reward, Salomé, block print Eugène Grasset 1892, Encre L. Marquet, print The style that I paint in has an influence on the mediums that I use. Acrylic paint is my preferred medium, as it has a quick dry time which allows me to layer and get solid planes of color more efficiently than with something like oil paint, and it allows for a sharp line quality. In a way acrylic paint versus oil paint can be compared to tattoo art versus traditional fine art. Oil paintings have generally been seen as more valuable and acrylic less so, just like how tattoos have historically been viewed as less than when compared to paintings and other traditional forms of art. I occasionally use gouache and watercolor paired with pen. Although these types of paints are more difficult to be precise with, they still have quick dry times like acrylic, but allow for a softer feel. Pairing pen with this helps to add the graphic, tattoo-style quality to my pieces. I think it is important to discuss the specific artists that have influenced my work. Eric Ennion was a natural history illustrator who focused primarily on birds. In his work he managed to capture the look and energy of the birds, often without landscapes or exact detail. In his work, compared to that of earlier wildlife illustrators, he was “no longer concerned to get every detail right in the photographic sense” (9). When I created art throughout high school, I was focused on making things as realistic as possible. As my art has evolved over the years, I have adopted the same thinking as Ennion because I have learned that full realistic detail is not always better or more enjoyable to paint. Walton Ford, an American painter and illustrator, is another one of my influences. The message behind his art is similar to mine, as he oftentimes represents extinct species. His work has been described as having a “powerful, graphic impact,” and a “faux-antique style” (10). One thing I strive for in my work is Ford’s idea of attraction and repulsion, where he creates beautiful art but once it is looked at closer, disturbing things come to light. I want my work to be attractive to people, but I also want the viewer to notice the details in the work that point to climate change, animal distress, and the harm humans cause other animals. One difference between our art is that Ford describes himself as a maximalist, whereas I prefer to have less detail, which relates back to my discussion on realistic detail and my discussion about Eric Ennion. My work has similar concepts to Tiffany Bozic, a contemporary female artist. Specifically, her acrylic painting on wood panel “The Rabbit Hole” (see the image below) interests me. Formally, the painting is depicting a decomposing adult rabbit with vibrant flowers growing out of it, and a butterfly on top of the flowers. Next to the adult rabbit are two young rabbits, sitting on top of autumnal-toned leaves. Behind all of this is the natural wood grain. I think composing this piece in this way is interesting and effective, as she lets the markings and texture of the wood panel shine. In doing this she creates an interesting background without actually having to paint it. I think the juxtaposition of a decomposing adult rabbit with the living younger ones can communicate rebirth but should really be seen in a more morbid light, representing death, loss of a loved one, and consequences of human impacts on wildlife. I think the flowers and butterflies represent the fact that life will go on, but it will not be the same. In this vain, Bozic is described as being “in the forefront of artists today redefining the aesthetics and imperative of global change” (12). Click here to see Tiffany Bozic 2019, The Rabbit Hole, 20” x 16”, acrylic on maple panel Another contemporary female artist I have been influenced by is Christina Mrozik. Her work tends to consist of animals, oftentimes distorted or made of flowers and other plants. One thing I carry into my own work is Mrozik’s use of background. Oftentimes there is a solid plane of one color behind the subject matter. When this isn’t done there are usually hints of shadows, subtle textures, or understated frames. This really allows for the subject matter to shine. Although her work (similar to Walton Ford) has a beautiful quality to it, with its crisp details, smooth blending, and pleasing color choices, it has serious undertones and sometimes ugly or grim elements like intestines. Despite having not gone as far as adding intestines to convey my message, I try to use human elements entangled with animals to accomplish this. One comment that comes up when showing my work is that the message behind it could be made stronger if I included things like blood and gore. The reason I choose not to do this is because I have seen a lot of examples of people who use gory details in order to guilt trip the viewer into caring for the animal. This is not me saying that anyone who uses these methods is invalid or makes bad work, as many artists, similar to Christina Mrozik, are really successful in doing so and convey their message well. I prefer my work to make people aware of their lack of empathy by making the animal seem almost like an object with their empty eyes and interaction with human elements. I want my art to combine aspects of traditional painting and past art movements, like Ukiyo-e and Art Nouveau, with the newer ideas of graphic design and tattoo art. My style has been influenced by artists like Walton Ford, Tiffany Bozic, and Christina Mrozik, who have a passion and drive to advocate for animals. I want to use my art to draw attention to and subsequently help nature, as climate change and one of its byproducts, animal displacement, are huge issues that are causing irreversible damage. Humans have inflicted so much pain on so many animals. I want my work in highlighting these animals and the causality of human actions to push more people to care about and as a result advocate for them. Sources
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