The Word

The challenge of the artist is to see the world anew. To branch out, to explore, to question, to learn, to evolve. Creating new work is sometimes an accidental procedure, sometimes specific, sometimes daring or silly depending. Taking it all too seriously, or forgetting to keep your tongue in your cheek can imply a kind of narcissism that pushes the viewer away, instead of inviting them closer. I take all my work very seriously, but seriously enjoy just as much the light that all seriousness contains, and hope for the viewer to have the same experience.
I was asked if I felt these works were: religious, political, or biblically-specific. I was asked if they were about my beliefs, or if they were based on other religious ideas or faiths, or more spiritual in nature. I was asked if they would offend anyone.
I responded that no, they are not religious.
Yes, they index religious texts with similar but not contextually religious works such as: Stephen Hawkings, A Brief History of Time. Sandra Bernhard's, May I Kiss You on the Lips, Miss Sandra. Shirley MacLaine's, Out on a Limb. Grimm's Fairy Tales, the Kabbalistic text, The Zohar, astrological texts, The Bible, The Qur'an, The Bhagavad Gita, and, The Complete Book of Tarot...so far.
I do not focus on any specific areas of text or book, however my awareness of each drives me to specific contents within each book, and I weave seemingly disparate ideas and ideologies with one and another.
I imagine some will be greatly offended.
I imagine some will be greatly inspired.
I take them very seriously, as seriously as I take great humor and delight in their weave and seeming contradictions because I view them all as so similar. As similar to one another as when one tries to see identical twins as unlike the other.
I view them as paintings, and call them such even though they more closely resemble in technology photographs than anything else, as photographic processes are used in their production.
They are all self-portraits.
They are all portraits.

http://www.michaelgardnerart.com/GalleryMain.asp?GalleryID=120146&AKey=CE893GNT

The Word_0023

Ink on Transparency Film, Matte Photo Paper

8.5" x 11"

2012