In these works, what was once text written to entice a reader's interest in a story becomes an object I use to entice a viewer to experience a moment of prolonged looking. The illusionistic techniques I use in my paintings allow me to create a potential moment of uncertainty (is it real?) for the viewer. During this period of looking, I want the viewer to observe and question the physical attributes of the headlines depicted. Acting as a bridge, the now objectified newspaper headline allows me to encourage the viewer to think about the daily barrage of headlines and our inability to control the events of our time.
While the headlines contained in my paintings are preserved indefinitely on pristine, clean, unfinished canvas, my drawings mimic the ephemeral nature of the newspaper and the stories portrayed. Because these drawings are unable to suspend disbelief the way the paintings do, the viewer knows the headlines in the drawings are not "real." What is "real," is the masking tape that appears to be holding each drawing. I use the masking tape to create a sense of spontaneity and impermanence, as if the headline was just cut from the newspaper and saved. As the masking tape ages, it will eventually change the appearance of my drawings just as time changes the appearance of newsprint and our understanding of the stories the newspaper tells.
Building Boom: Travel, Page 10, THE NEW YORK TIMES, SUNDAY, JANUARY 13, 2008, 2009.
Oil on canvas. 22" x 24".
View details >
Dark Morning: A1, The Globe and Mail, Saturday, Oct. 13, 2007, 2008.
Oil on canvas. 11 3/8" x 12".
View detail >
$10: A1, THE PROVINCE, FRIDAY, APRIL 25, 2008, 2009.
Pencil and masking tape on paper. 12 1/2" x 11".
View detail >
38 Headlines: The Globe and Mail, Saturday, Nov. 24, 2007, 2008.
Oil on canvas. 22 3/4" x 24".
View details >
Dollar's Climb: A1, The Globe and Mail, Saturday, Nov. 3, 2007, 2009.
Pencil and masking tape on paper. 11 3/8" x 12".
View detail >
Full of Art: R1, The Globe and Mail, Saturday, Dec. 15, 2007, 2009.
Oil on canvas. 11 3/8" x 12".
Get There: Styles, Page 10, THE NEW YORK TIMES, SUNDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2007, 2009.
Pencil and masking tape on paper. 11" x 12".
View detail >
Violence Three Ways: A1, THE VANCOUVER SUN, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2008, 2008.
Oil on canvas. 11 1/8" x 12 3/8".
Violence Three Ways: A1, THE PROVINCE, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 11, 2008, 2008.
Oil on canvas. 11" x 12 1/2".
Violence Three Ways: A1, The Globe and Mail, MONDAY, Feb. 11, 2008, 2008.
Oil on canvas. 11 3/8" x 12".