Welcome to Visual Hierarchy, an online visual playground. Gathered here are pictures I make. Visual Hierarchy is a laboratory. Research is done in a wide variety of mediums.
Jason Lanka’s massive drawings and photos are now on display in the Atrium space in the Union. They will be up for several weeks. Here are some images of his work and some information about his work.
Boundary; something that marks or fixes a limit (as of territory). The line that divides one area of land from another.
The space at which our culture comes in contact with the environment inspires my creative work. Much can be understood about the nature of how our society defines its role and place within the natural world by the observation of this boundary.
I seek to address the demarcation of our species’ relationship with the land. Am I of the land or in the land? Each piece made within a lineage of exploration has set out to answer this question. Our identity as people and a nation are so often defined by our place within our environment and how we view our relationship with the natural world.
Kako Ueda and Roxanne Jackson focus on physical nature and human nature in abstract and inventive ways. They share an interest in dualities, such as nature and culture, light and dark. In their work, the natural world is intricate, fascinating, grotesque, frightening – something to be drawn deeply into and sometimes shocked by.
New York artist Kako Ueda constructs her work from intricate hand-cut paper which references, in part, paper cutting from Japan where she was born. Minneapolis-based Roxanne Jackson works three-dimensionally with clay to form large compositions of human/animal hybrids.
Cal Lane is an artist I recently Stumbledupon. Her work is awesomely crafted and her concepts are strong. The aesthetics of her work draw me in and captivate. I would love to see her work in person and be able to examine it from all angles.
From her artist statement:
“I like to work as a visual devil’s advocate, using contradiction as a vehicle for finding my way to an empathetic image, an image of opposition that creates a balance – as well as a clash – by comparing and contrasting ideas and materials.This manifested in a series of “Industrial Doilies”, pulling together industrial and domestic life as well as relationships of strong and delicate, masculine and feminine, practical and frivolity, ornament and function. There is also a secondary relationship being explored here, of lace used in religious ceremonies as in weddings, christenings and funerals.”
I found this piece to be pretty humorous and different compared to her other works:
Beth Cavener Stichter turns clay into living matter. It moves, breathes, and makes animal noises. Not really, but her life sized ceramic animals are filled with life. Her rich creations are filled with emotion, sexuality, and narrative. The creatures interact with their environment dynamically whether they are bound with rope, choked from the wall, or punctured with metal and the already strong presence of her work is intensified. Much of her work reminds me Roxanne Jackson’s work which I posted about here. Here are some of my favorites from her website right about here.
Roxanne Jackson’s compelling creations tap into my sense of mortality. The rawness and weight of her work makes it dangerous, and exciting. “Fight or flight” sensations occur not so infrequently. The aesthetics of her work are simply awesome. Her animal forms are very realistic in that they look real, but also they have a real presence within the room (or within the photograph of the room) as if I could feel its body heat. The rich golds, heavy blacks, and powerful reds simply fry my brain with joy. Here is a clip from her artist statement:
“I am concerned with confronting the shadows of the unconscious, having a dialogue with the grotesque and, therein, discovering beauty. The tenor of my work is macabre and emotional as I deal with extreme axioms to dramatize the dualities of our nature; these polar aspects reside within us and include the male and female, vulnerability and strength, the light and the dark.”
A month later I’ve finally sifted through all my photos and picked out my favs from Art Chcago. I apologize ahead of time for the lack of information on these images. No titles or artists, its heresy I realize that, but you’ll forget about it once you start looking at how awesome these works are.
I’m taking a summer class with Katie Martin, a kickass teacher and artist. Logically one could correctly assume that the class is also kickass. The first assignment, 7 sculptures in 7 days, has led me down some interesting paths. Here are glimpses of what my hands are doing in class:
metalest dragon ever
school is better when fire is involved
Basically I’m having too much fun with candles, if “too much fun” even exists. I really like this period in the class because of the emphasis on play. Playing with the materials loosens you up, there are no standards or expectations. I’ve noticed that I get more involved with these candle sculptures more than some of my drawings and I think its because of the Play Element.
Ridding one’s mind of standards and expectations is extremely difficult to do. Being trained to constantly think about spaces I start coming up with thousands of subconsious rules for how reality is constructed. Its how I realize my environment. Even though I’m a confused artist who doesn’t know what to make my mind knows what it likes and what it wants in an image.
In class each student is required to present and artist/artist group/ or something art related. My other classmates have really inspired me. I’ve decided to start a new project that is just about making and making continuously. As always, more on this later..
Stumbling across this post with artwork by Jan Vormann really made my day. In the days of my lego junkiedom a permanent bond was created between the objects and I. I really love the idea he is working with here, and its aesthetically awesome.
A friend recently showed me work by Nick Cave. You can check out more images here and an interview is below. I think his work is an excellent example of interdiciplinary hybridization. He combines fiber art and dance in a pretty awesome way. Even the photo stills of these costumes are wonderful.
A friend recently showed me work by Nick Cave. You can check out more images 
Current Talk