In biology, a chimaera is created when two zygotes collide at an early stage of development, resulting in a creature containing two distinct sets of genes. The name is borrowed from Greek mythology where chimaeras are monsters born with the mixed attributes of lions, snakes, and goats. Fictional creatures of synthesis, like chimaeras, have entranced humans throughout history, making us ask: ‘What if?’
After graduating with a dual BFA in Painting and Illustration, I returned to school to gain experience in a three dimensional medium through ceramics. I found myself responding to the unique gestural quality of collapsed or altered thrown ceramic forms; in these forms, I found a fluid and confident energy that resisted the symmetries I expected of pottery. My painting background gave me a starting point to process and utilize the abstract gesture of these forms expressively.
As I experimented with the relationships of shape and surface within these chimaeric forms I found myself something akin to a morphologist: imagining what might exist inside and what made their surfaces desirable or repulsive or alive; what their life cycles might be like and the process between budding and collapsing.
My understanding of art includes its function as visual communication; my work is not meant to voice answers, but to ask questions and deliver experiences. Above all, I want to create work that inspires viewers as equally as it inspires me.