Urban Garden

This piece is the result of a challenge to myself to be utterly resourceful within the realm of my studio space. I wanted to create something beautiful and organic from bold, graphic elements and integrate the untapped potential of ordinary items that might otherwise be considered scrap. The work began with decorative papers on my worktable, not yet cleaned up from the completion of a previous project. It is a very sculptural piece, with each petal containing 4-7 layers of paper and card stock. As I assembled the petals and fastened them together, it struck me that it was a literal growth process in action. After many seasons of being in a “move and collect” mindset, I am fully engrossed in a “pause and reflect” season of processing my experiences and mementos and employing them in innovative ways. Each layer of each petal has meaning as an individual item that has been collected and maintained over the years. The physical act of forming, assessing and attaching the petals to one another brought forth the comprehension that all of our experiences have a role in the cultivation of our own growth and development. We are each a work in progress and we each have a story that adds a bit of beauty to our world.

Materials used include:

Korean boutique clothing tags
Parisian decorative wrapping paper
Booklet from the Kyoto Costume Institute
Vintage Greek lexicons
Italian calendar
Korean decorative wrapping paper
Antique postcard
Japanese spa towel insert
Korean receipt
Interior design book jacket
Aircraft schematics
Topographic map
Assorted decorative papers and card stock