Reliquary for Mom and Dad

Mixed Media

For the past eight years my work has involved the exploration of reliquary and altar forms. Encased in cabnetry elaborately constructed from borrowed and recycled materials are icons, relics, and mementos of both personal and cultural significance. These altars reflect the influence of both the simple passion of household shrines and the ostentatious reverence of traditional Catholic altars. Construction includes extensive wood work and porcelain slip casting and press molded clay. The use of photographic transparencies will aid in the physical layering of visual information as a metaphor for the depth of personal experience. The resulting work should be, above all, beautiful. With this entry into the viewer's attention, I hope to engage in a dialogue this is as visceral as it is enigmatic.