July 2012

Smoke Signals

The work that comprises Smoke Signals serves as an alchemical medium through which messages, simultaneously profound and mundane, can be communicated. The images within these drawings and paintings are constructed like a collage, where disparate elements are fused during the alchemical process of making an image. The elements used have been pulled from a variety of places including magazines, the internet, observational drawing, and random mark-making. The paintings take the form of something like a motivational poster. They are thinly painted with multiple layers of glazing and unblended paint, which emphasizes the illusionistic qualities of the painting. The drawings are also comprised of thinly applied watercolor or graphite and are reminiscent of illuminated manuscripts.

Like that old form of long-distance communication, these messages are relatively simple and somewhat hard to read. They are shape-shifting slogans significant to everyone and no one in particular. The phrases within these paintings and drawings are simple and mundane and can be full or void of meaning depending on the reader. Within these works there are suggestions of another kind of medium, one that carries messages between this world and other unseen forces. When generating this work, Elizabeth Kauffman looked at personal as well as global events, and was inspired by the idea that this year is one of transformation. Upheaval often leaves us looking for guidance, but as the elected officials and the system of global capitalism continues to surpass our expectations for corruption, greed, and destruction, we are left searching for other forms of wisdom. Perhaps it’s about time we learned how to get out of this mess on our own.

Visit Kauffman’s website at www.everydaydressing.com.