randy heller DESIGN HOUSE
F R A G M E N T S
For this exhibition I made an entire body of work custom to the space of interior designer Randy Heller’s design house in Highland Park.
I went to the museum, and inspiration struck as I walked through a gallery of ancient Greek sculptures. It dawned on me that these sculptures are incomplete —one is missing its nose and a couple of fingers, another lost an entire leg to time. Yet before they land in the museum galleries, no one recasts the nose or the missing limb. We admire these statues more such as they are, incomplete, rescued from the erosion of the elements.
While making artwork for FRAGMENTS, I thought of objects that age or break and take on value over time, instead of losing value as time wears them down. It was important to use materials that are inherently subject to be tempered over time. The paper is a heavy cotton rag paper, made from recycled clothes —hence the “rag” paper. The heavy weight of the paper (300 gsm/ 140 lb) ensures that it soaks up the ink, allowing me to create a range of ink texture, from dark to light.
Ink-wise, I came up with a range of tints, from light sepia to dark chocolate tones, and introducing only two additional colors: a jade green (sometimes more blueish), and a rusty red.
Video credit: Amanda Sellers
