Sandra's Senior Studio

  22"x30", Watercolor Artists Statement: There is beauty in functionality. A gas station shines brightly to anyone driving on an empty tank. Streetlamps are looming, ugly sculptures that we would be lost and blind without. Unappealing elements do not escape my paintings because they are indicative of human compromise. The raw reality of our lives is seen in open dumpsters, shifting sidewalks, and plastic shopping bags blowing in the wind. Years from now I want to look back at these paintings from when I was young and remember those ugly metal sculptures, and the other basic compromises we made to live better lives.  The quality of watercolor helps to create a sense of surrealism. The watery marks are reminiscent of a dream-like state which creates a strong instigator for drawing on the viewer’s pre-existing memories. My goal is to use this medium to capture the seemingly banal, hoping to recreate the rawness of the landscape while allowing ambiguity for individual connectio...

 Here are some works I've made in the past week or so, just working with application of the paint. I'm thinking about ways to capture light through color usage and allowing spots of ambiguity in the layering process.  Still working on final painting for our final critique! See you all soon!