The artists statements
by Vanesa Montoya
My body of work explores the theme of impermanence. Being a very
broad theme, my work developed differently over time, exploring the theme as
impermanence in various subjects like humans, in our creations and in our
lives. I explored this motif through the use of various techniques. One of the
first techniques I explored was three dimensional. I constructed a piece which
is a sculpture of a human hand made entirely out of matches and glue. This was
one of my first pieces which explored impermanence, since it symbolized the
potential to burn that everything can have, and the vulnerability of our own
bodies and lives as humans subject to variables of change. A different method I
used as exploration was incorporating movement or the illusion of movement in
my pieces. I developed this technique mostly using acrylics as medium, and
applied it to painting human faces on some of my most recent work titled
Impermanent. These pieces were made on tempered steel, adding an important
material significance to the work about the power of change. Another way I
explored this motif was by exploring the city environments through photography
and drawing. My photography explored loss and alienation created by the city
environment where one’s identity seems to be of little importance.
The strategies I
used to develop a relationship between the viewer and the piece are evident in
my form of presentation. Many of my favorite pieces are usually larger sizes
because they do a better job of giving a first impression. However, despite
their large size, many pieces do an even better job of getting viewer attention
by not being explicit in their images, like my piece titles Smoke. This forces
the viewer to engage in an analysis of the work, thus forcing them to develop
an opinion not only of the work but of why it is presented in this manner.
Other pieces use
different forms of visual impact of an opposite nature by displaying a focus on
detail. This is more evident in the intricate nature of pieces like the
sculpture and the unfinished drawings. Through these works, I intend my
audience to feel intrigued by these works and to want
to find a common theme between them. This may be harder than it looks since even
though all my pieces display some form of impermanence, not all of them explore
it in the same way and require some sort of interpretation.
The way I have
arranged my works allows me to create some color and form balance. For example,
on my second wall, I have my painting Smoke in the middle, Cross-Faced to one side and What You Did to
the other side. These works all use dark hues of either reds blues or both,
which created a balanced color scheme on this wall. My arrangement also
represents the relationship between the works presented by placing works from
different stages of exploration together. For example, Smoke, Cross-Faced,
and Potential to Burn are on the same wall because they focused on forms
of destruction such as vices and fire. What You Did is also on this wall
because it demonstrated the emotions that often trigger destruction.
On the opposite
wall, Impermanent I & II, Fade, Construction I & II,
Neon and Love Gone Cold are all visual representations of
processes of change including movement, disappearance, loss and creation. This
arrangement allowed me to showcase works which visually displayed this process
as a group. It also allowed me to create color balance by placing works that
used only black and white or were drawings in the middle of the wall, and
colored works on the sides.
I used this form of
presentation and selection of works because I want the audience to be able to
determine the common theme between the works and find themselves thinking and
relating to the pieces. Most importantly, I want my audience to be able to
relate what my works communicate to their own experiences, and give them the
meaning that they feel is most true.
Studio Work
Fade by Vanesa Montoya
Linocut print on paper
montage 110 x105 cm
This project is an exploration of a medium that was new to me, which was printmaking. By displaying my printed impressions in this manner, the work communicates how the figure is fading away, as if he is getting lost himself or simply being consumed into his surroundings, until at the end there is nothing left. The fading is meant to go from the upper left corner tolower right corner, because in this way it also creates a visual balance in the composition.
Impermanent I & II by Vanesa Montoya
Acrylic on Tempered Steel Sheet 45 X 58 cm
These pieces are both an exploration of movement as a change factor and of materials which are subject to change. The faces are painted on steel sheets that I tempered to change their color and begin a process of oxidation or a change of state. The movement of the faces also demonstrate a change of state through brushstrokes that suggest movement, communicating how even what appears strong will be subject to change. Color harmony was achieved using hues that could be tied well to the appearance of the metal.
Love Gone Cold by Vanesa Montoya
Digital Print on Canvas 44 x 63 cm
This photograph explores the use of a single light source combined with the dynamic aesthetic of dripping water. This piece was meant to create a visual representation of unexpected loss as a sudden reminder of the temporary nature of our own lives and those in them, how things can slip right through our hands. It is intended to cause this impression on the viewer by visually referencing this idiom through the falling water which is highlighted by the use of strong contrasts with shadows.
Neon by Vanesa Montoya
Digital Print 59 x 34.5cm
This work was created using several photographs I took in NYC and blending certain pieces of them together. The composition was created using human figures and neon lights, in order to represent the lifestyle in a large city, where everything happens to fast and no one can slow down, which explains the use of movement in adding motion blurring to the composition. This work also references John Mayer’s song “Neon” which deals with the unreliability and ever-present created by such a lifestyle.
Potential to Burn by Vanesa Montoya
Matches sculpture 11 x 20 x 11 cm
This piece explores creation using a material that is meant to consume itself, or to consume otherthings. This piece aims to represent how ultimately everything humans touch will disappear. Our bodies themselves are nothing but temporary, thus much of what we create fails to last despite our wishes. This piece also represents the harm that people can cause without knowing it, as if our hands have the potential to burn what is in our reach.
Smoke by Vanesa Montoya
Acrylic on Canvas 69 x 96 cm
Smoke is the first painting of a set of two, which explores figures that appear to be barely there. The way the figure of the girl is almost hidden by her surroundings is a visual representation of her struggle to stand out and the fear of fading into nothing. The painting aims to demonstrate this emotion to the viewer not only by her camouflaged silhouette, but the presence of smoke which is also the vice that the figure has fallen into and can’t get out of.
What You Did by Vanesa Montoya
Acrylic on wood 40 x 123 cm
This piece is meant to communicate strong emotions like anger and resentment which are exemplified in the style of painting which has an agitated rhythm. The use of strong hues like red and dark grey are also a means of presenting this negativity. Towards the bottom there is
less and eventually no paint, which represents how emotions die down, how anger and pain eventually turn into resignation.
Cross-faced by Vanesa Montoya
Acrylic on Canvas 84 x 71 cm
Cross-faced is the second painting of my set exploring vices. It uses the same color style in
that it is mainly different variations of two hues, as well as the smoky environment which
reflects light. This painting shows a man who seems consumed by his surroundings, he is trapped in an environment from which he sees no way out of. By blurring the figure of the man with the smoke and surrounding light, this work allows the viewer to see the figure’s silent
struggle.
Exhibition setting
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