 |
|
|
Klempan's Studio Interior
(A collection of found objects, artfully arranged)
|
Todd Klempan
Throughout the years I have collected a wide array of found object material. Absolutely nothing is spared from my impulsive nature to find the aesthetic value in even the most insignificant toss-away. Forlorn bits of paper, fallen flowers, and lifeless insects gathered from dusty windowsills readily find a home among the assembled matter. These wonderfully overlooked and neglected items may lend themselves to a piece I may working on, adding to the image at hand. Those not suitable get filed away as possible elements for another picture. Approaching my work much like a puzzle, I recognize that there are clearly pieces that fit, and those that do not. Nothing gets thrown out if it has some undefined aesthetic property, and can be worked in later. For me, then, it means keeping many drawers and boxes full of scraps and discards, both hidden away and on display. The ceiling and walls of my studio are covered with some of the more presentable items, and all of it has become the palette from which to draw my inspiration. I can almost sense that the individual pieces are being excreted from the organism that has been created by the collection of all these objects. This environment in which I work allows me to participate in the process of becoming, both for the artwork itself, and for me as an artist.
Much like a naturalist, I feel as though I am documenting or recording a small fragment of something larger. Preserving a moment in the past, or a fleeting sense of the present, for someone in the future. This feeling dove-tails nicely with my personal philosophy that regardless of whether we are created in the likeness of a divine entity, or the culmination of untold years of cell organization, we are more than the sum of our parts. I suppose this is why I have always enjoyed the process of collage as my primary source of self-expression.
|
