Artist Statement
Erika Mahr
Artist Statement

Combining geometric forms with arduous drawing processes, my work challenges the notion of logic and geometry as being cold and mechanical. The work explores the organic quality that can be found within systemized logic.  The mark making process, whether additive or subtractive, creates imperfections that would otherwise be absent within a mechanical process.  The hard-edged minimal geometry becomes softened through these imperfections, and the logical space becomes more accessible to the viewer.

Sculptures

The paper sculptures investigate geometry, space, repetition and time.  On each page of the stack, a shape is cut using an x-acto knife.  On each subsequent page the shape changes slightly in size or position.  When stacked, the shapes form a 3 dimensional negative space.  Within this geometric cavity, the viewer experiences not a spatial void, but rather a narrative of both movement and time. With each page being visible, a “simultaneous narrative” is formed, allowing the viewer to experience the entire narrative at once.  The softness of the black paper and slight imprecision of the cutting process creates a warm and contemplative architectural space rather than a sterile environment associated with minimal form.

The drawings that accompany each sculpture are schematics of the original plans for the sculpture and are drawn after their completion.  They are a visual representation of the conceptualization of each piece.

Drawings

The large-scale pen and ink drawings investigate the dichotomy of the cerebral and emotive.  Each begin with a small sketch based off of a momentary emotion.  These drawings are then broken down with a system of logic and reconstructed and enlarged onto a quarter inch hand-drawn grid. Each square of the grid is systematically filled with repetitive lines to recreate the small sketch on a much larger scale.  The final drawing consists of hundred of thousands of these lines.  The mark-making process and large scale of the paper present the viewer with both the micro and the macro, allowing for dual experiences of the cerebral and emotive.