the method behind the madness

For those out of towners who might be interested (I'm talking to you, pops), here's my artists statement that accompanies my 3 paintings. Again, anyone who can make it: Tonight. 6:30-9:30. Jacobs Well. 42nd & Gennessee. Be there. There'll be food. And sangria. At a church. 'fo real? Completely.

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I began painting to find healing amidst the busyness of the world and the flurry of my own thoughts. Using artifacts from my past (photographs, poems I’ve written, words and scripture that I love), I can preserve and confront my history in a way that is restoring to my spirit.

Selecting items to collage is something I try to do quickly, so I don’t over think how certain elements might be paired together. As I assemble the pieces, I pay special attention to space and overlapping, attempting to arrange things in a way that explains their connection. The paint is ultimately what ties them together, and I always begin with one or two base colors – usually blue, green or purple. I find them calming in the complexity of my pieces, and they lend themselves well to blending and contrast.

I treat my painting as a type of therapy. My work particularly scrutinizes the past; poking and prodding, trying to create visually what a memory might look like. The lines of color over the images are almost reminiscent of streaks of water or dirt on a windowpane. I’d like the viewer to approach the work as if they were looking through a window into many static moments from the past, some highly visible, some hidden. In these paintings, the collective moments are allowed to co-mingle and make sense of each other in a new environment, free of time and space.

I listened to this sermon series while in Kenya this summer. At the time, I was working with orphaned children and experiencing a completely different reality. Attempting to process what I saw was painful and challenging, yet the “elemental” nature of life was so apparent in Africa. In that place I witnessed the blazing fire of poverty, the fertile, earthy soil of community and witnessed how two lives and worlds could intersect, their breath becoming the same in God’s sight. Working on these specific pieces helped me find peace while processing and categorizing what I saw.

-ally moore