Daniel Birdsong
Daniel Birdsong - Dogfight 45" x 36"
Artist Statement
I have always been drawn towards the process side of creativity. For me, art is an endeavor of choices, permutations and associations that render the conceptual and visual complete. I employ a process of creating fields utilizing collaged elements of multicolored, patterned papers, pages from art journals and dictionaries that, along with drawn and painted images, are intended to invoke a narrative.
The process begins by utilizing a matrix, or grid as the framework upon which I paint and begin application. It is a logical step as it represents to me a form of strategy and approach. Much like every story has a beginning, middle and end, or a "Once upon a time…”, and “……they lived happily ever after.“ During the course of the work, as I come to grips with what is unfolding, I let the patterns deviate and roam with my brushwork becoming more improvisational and expressionistic.
These strokes serve as the threads that will bind patchwork into the whole. This combination of structure and whimsy represents to me pertinent elements of
storytelling or “ spinning yarns “. Where a story exists in words that are spoken, heard, read or seen, there is always the possibility of ambiguity depending on the
audiences’ viewpoints, experiences, and perceptions. Also, as a story is handed down, it is prone to change due to memory or embellishment. My imagery, which is rendered simply as line drawings that reference the printed image or composed of collaged elements, serve the dual purpose of being both literary characters and demonstrative devices much like those found in elementary spelling and reading primers.
These quilts or storytelling devices composed of images, patterned papers and paint are arranged into structures of squares and circles, both solid and seemingly afloat to give the viewer an exploded view. This technical or anatomical representation allows the contents to be studied individually or as a whole. One can dissect and become familiar with the parts, which are commonly held together by brushwork of yellowed tones and tints of paint. This choice in color is not meant to simply appear as “ vintage “, but rather as threadwork infused and bestowed with a history, invocations of nostalgia and reminiscing, that has been carried down and passed on. Each element stands out with focus, says it’s part, only then to disappear back into place.
I have always been drawn towards the process side of creativity. For me, art is an endeavor of choices, permutations and associations that render the conceptual and visual complete. I employ a process of creating fields utilizing collaged elements of multicolored, patterned papers, pages from art journals and dictionaries that, along with drawn and painted images, are intended to invoke a narrative.
The process begins by utilizing a matrix, or grid as the framework upon which I paint and begin application. It is a logical step as it represents to me a form of strategy and approach. Much like every story has a beginning, middle and end, or a "Once upon a time…”, and “……they lived happily ever after.“ During the course of the work, as I come to grips with what is unfolding, I let the patterns deviate and roam with my brushwork becoming more improvisational and expressionistic.
These strokes serve as the threads that will bind patchwork into the whole. This combination of structure and whimsy represents to me pertinent elements of
storytelling or “ spinning yarns “. Where a story exists in words that are spoken, heard, read or seen, there is always the possibility of ambiguity depending on the
audiences’ viewpoints, experiences, and perceptions. Also, as a story is handed down, it is prone to change due to memory or embellishment. My imagery, which is rendered simply as line drawings that reference the printed image or composed of collaged elements, serve the dual purpose of being both literary characters and demonstrative devices much like those found in elementary spelling and reading primers.
These quilts or storytelling devices composed of images, patterned papers and paint are arranged into structures of squares and circles, both solid and seemingly afloat to give the viewer an exploded view. This technical or anatomical representation allows the contents to be studied individually or as a whole. One can dissect and become familiar with the parts, which are commonly held together by brushwork of yellowed tones and tints of paint. This choice in color is not meant to simply appear as “ vintage “, but rather as threadwork infused and bestowed with a history, invocations of nostalgia and reminiscing, that has been carried down and passed on. Each element stands out with focus, says it’s part, only then to disappear back into place.
