SECRET REALM
I want the viewer to experience the feeling of walking into another world where light, mist, rocks, water, and fire are exploding all around them. I am interested in biological and geographic forms that exist in nature. Simple lines and complex patterns fascinate my imagination and lead me to believe natural phenomena says something profound about our world and the human capacity to perceive beauty. I feel Spirit in the elements of nature and try to capture that experience on paper.
I use bubble wrap and ink to print a pattern onto the paper. This creates a matrix to which I can respond and develop the landscape around it. I believe the world unfolds in a very fluid yet deliberate way and I invite that process to take place on my paper. Each choice I make provokes new possibilities and the end result is never anticipated.
My work is influenced by my experiences living in Katmandu, Nepal. The vibrant imagery of Tibetan Buddhist art effects the way I see the natural world. Just as surrealist Roberto Matta used the idea of the “inscape” as a way to stylistically convey the artist’s individual psyche, the colors and forms in my paintings convey my own “secret” landscape. In Buddhism, the idea of a “secret realm” is often used to describe a place so sacred only the initiated may enter. I believe each person has a secret realm and the capacity to enter if they so choose.
Brooke Kemmerer
School of the Art Institute of Chicago 2006
I want the viewer to experience the feeling of walking into another world where light, mist, rocks, water, and fire are exploding all around them. I am interested in biological and geographic forms that exist in nature. Simple lines and complex patterns fascinate my imagination and lead me to believe natural phenomena says something profound about our world and the human capacity to perceive beauty. I feel Spirit in the elements of nature and try to capture that experience on paper.
I use bubble wrap and ink to print a pattern onto the paper. This creates a matrix to which I can respond and develop the landscape around it. I believe the world unfolds in a very fluid yet deliberate way and I invite that process to take place on my paper. Each choice I make provokes new possibilities and the end result is never anticipated.
My work is influenced by my experiences living in Katmandu, Nepal. The vibrant imagery of Tibetan Buddhist art effects the way I see the natural world. Just as surrealist Roberto Matta used the idea of the “inscape” as a way to stylistically convey the artist’s individual psyche, the colors and forms in my paintings convey my own “secret” landscape. In Buddhism, the idea of a “secret realm” is often used to describe a place so sacred only the initiated may enter. I believe each person has a secret realm and the capacity to enter if they so choose.
Brooke Kemmerer
School of the Art Institute of Chicago 2006
