Aegis

Comment

Comment by Resident Curator on February 15, 2012 at 5:19pm

Curator’s Comment:

 

Aegis is an appealing work as it simultaneously retains the physical properties of an object and ethereal two dimensional image, as the surface treatment reads as flat pictorial space rather than dimensional assemblage.  The shielding reference itself presents as both vulnerable and open, while somewhat impermeable in its richly textured ground.  The gold wings on top contribute to a mythological narrative, but for me also personify and incarnate the space, as if I’m viewing an emblematic portrait.  I also find the mixture of media to be an interesting blend of synthetic and natural materials, as the rough unevenness of the tondo border stops the piece from being viewed as overly precious or sentimental.  I find the other collages that include more centralized or literal figures (deified or profane) to be interesting conceptually, but less surprising or innovative from a formal standpoint because of their use of expected ephemera and gold.  The reliquary format suits your way of working extremely well, and also offers fertile ground to introduce and codify more complex secular relationships.