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Charles Clary
Conway, SC
Artist Statement:
I use paper to create a world of fiction that challenges the viewer to suspend disbelief and venture into my fabricated reality. By layering paper I am able to build intriguing land formations that mimic viral colonies and concentric sound waves. These strange landmasses contaminate and infect the surfaces they inhabit transforming the space into something suitable for their gestation. Towers of paper and color jut into the viewer's space inviting playful interactions between the viewer and this conceived world. These constructions question the notion of microbial outbreaks and their similarity to the visual representation of sound waves, transforming them into something more playful and inviting.
My most recent paper installation sculptures deal with the idea that music is an intangible virus, and we, the viewers, are the carriers that spread this "disease" from one space to another. Each paper tower resembles computer generated sound waves, petri dishes, bacterial and viral colonies, as well as fungal and mold growths; the towers represent the similarities that each share on the micro level. Context is removed, inviting the viewer to closely explore the work without fear of being infected. These works explore the constant "growth" of my installations, which if left alone to gestate, will eventually take over entire spaces, infesting every surface they touch. This ominous feeling is counter-balanced by bright, garish color schemes, which evoke playful interactions with each tower.
Recently, the work has become more personal, at least through the process of creation.
In February of 2013 I lost both my mother and father, two weeks apart, to smoking related cancers. It was a devastating time in my life, but I channeled my grief into the conceptual ideas of my work. Cancer is a disease that is a perfectly structured killer; it is beautiful in its architecture but grotesque in its eventuality. I began to think about nostalgia, longing for a childhood I never had, and parents that I needed. These thoughts brought me to the exploration of drywall and discarded wallpaper. The idea behind the more recent work using retro pop culture from my childhood is of order from chaos, beauty from destruction, and hope for more joyous times.
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