Shifting Perception

Paths of Memory, 2012

Drafting film over ballpoint pen on gessoed wood
33"x42"

Wake, 2010

Drafting film over ballpoint pen on watercolor paper
16"x20"

The Great Dictator, 2012

Ballpoint pen on drafting film and watercolor paper

24"x36"

Cyrus the Great, 2012

Ballpoint pen on drafting film and watercolor paper
20"x24"

Your Future, 2012

Drafting film, tracing paper

16"x20"

Tracing Memory, 2012

Drafting film over ballpoint pen on watercolor paper
8.5"x10" 

March 3, 2010 6:10PM
Drafting film over pencil on paper
8.5"x10"

Colleen’s art shares her experience of the universe. She presents a strong sense of graphic sensibility that maintains an ethereal quality. She builds up masses of ballpoint pen circles to create patterns of obfuscating shadows and defining lights that confuse and clarify the subject. She chooses this time-consuming yet meditative process as a way to give life to every detail.

Her series "Shifting Perception" highlights the importance of memory in creating a positive future.
The heart of the show is hidden, but not lost. The viewer must touch the work to complete the piece. When only a small detail appears, the viewer must use memory to recreate the image in its entirety. The experience of the piece continues as long as the memory lasts. Memory defies loss.

Memories tempt us to interpret the present based on the past and, from there, create our future. Some of the pieces display iconic images with negative associations. The images can incite certain past memories, but a touch of reality can easily shift our perception, allowing us to connect with a point in the past when inspiration rather than fear could have kept negative events from occurring. Memory defines the past and inspires the future.

Will yours be negative or positive?