The Random House Unabridged Dictionary – Second Edition defines circle in a variety of fashions. Definition #1 (a closed plane consisting of all points at a given distance for a point within it called the center)
Circles have played a very dominant role in my art since college and most likely long before that. I recall my mother bringing a compass and a pad of paper home from Eaton’s, the corner drugstore, to entertain me one day when I was home from school sick with the flu. The tool thrilled me. Later the circle became the subject of much of my work in college. I etched a series of fictitious astronomical prints featuring spheres, their orbits, and the monuments people have made to track them. Definition #14 (the orbit of a heavenly body), Definition #16 (a sphere or orb) I did a series of paintings and drawings called The Battle of Sun + Moon Fought With Kitchen Knives featuring two spheres in varying degrees of recognition. The title and the imagery combined the handiwork of the divine (heavenly bodies) with the human creation (kitchen knives), something vast with something easily held. Something magic with something mundane. The circle symbolizes both realms.
While a circle can represent the heavens and trace their movements, it also defines space closer to home. It represents the society we choose to live within. Definition #11 (a number of persons bound by a common tie) The circle’s nature is to to enclose, so it must also exclude. Thus, a circle is simply defined by where a line turns in on itself. It symbolizes ourselves and where we choose to set our boundaries. It encompasses Definition #18 (to enclose in a circle, surround; encircle),, it excludes Definition #10 (a complete series forming a connected whole) ,, and it also avoids Definition #20 (to change course so as to pass by or avoid collision with; bypass; evade). A circle then symbolizes who we are and how we define ourselves. Definition #1 (a closed plane consisting of all points at a given distance from a point within it called the center), Individually, we are each the center. The circle defines the space and people around us, our individual world.
My world is soft and shifting, rough around the edges and imperfect. These circles provide a finite, simple space for exploration, each on its own. The small format allows for many ideas to be explored quickly without becoming bogged down by technical considerations. Past imagery mingles with current source materials, constantly in flux during their making, these pieces create a space where the mundane may be contained and touched by magic. This is where I can save my thoughts and share them with the world at large. They are a series only in terms of their format and experimental intent.