Andrew Millner: Texts

2 September 2010 in Articles | Comments

What is “nature?” What is “natural?” These questions are increasingly difficult to answer as the borders of the natural and artificial continue to blur. As the sphere of human influence grows larger, questions about our relationship to the “natural” and our place in it prove ever more pressing.

For the past three years, I have been “collecting” trees and plants by drawing their contours directly into the computer. I’ve notated the simple outlines of leaves, branches, and limbs, by tracing their outlines with an electronic pen and tablet.

The digital medium describes all things equally; the near and the far, the large and the small, without the prejudice inherent in our familiar acts of looking. The idiosyncrasies of my hand trace over photographs taken from multiple points of view. Through the process of zooming in and out, the drawings capture information outside the experience of the human eye or camera. The closer one gets to these works, the more one can see. It is a pure act of drawing, evoking a mental map of the natural world.

The composite effect is a dizzying web of information. Unfettered by any physical constraints, the drawings can extend over months, or even years, without any set scale or date of completion.

How changes in technology change our relationship with the natural world is germane to my artistic explorations. Advents in technology have always had a profound impact on art practice, and change how artists mediate their environment. In my art practice, these novel drawing tools facilitate greater intimacy and prolonged time for investigation, but also suggest evidence of our estrangement from the natural.

Exposure 11

13 August 2008 in Reviews

As August rolls on, the number of artistic events dwindles. Gallery 210 director Terry Suhre takes advantage of that by scheduling his annual survey of local artists for August and September.

Hothouse- CCA/Richard Levy Gallery

21 June 2008 in Articles

I haven’t written an artist statement per se, but thought I could lay out a description of my thoughts, processes and plans for the upcoming shows this summer…