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Lee Ann Thill, Offshoots, acrylic on canvas panel, 12x12 in.
INSPIRATION
This piece started as an experiment in composition and form, informed by my ongoing exploration of representing invisible disabilities. I have been thinking about physiological processes of adaptation and new growth, while simultaneously thinking about my development as an artist over time.
The theme, "Revealing our Magnificence", is also dual. First, I spent the first half of my life dealing with shame about my disabilities, so finding visual language to reveal all of myself is central to my work. Second, I have similarly been working through feelings about having functionally abandoned my art career aspirations as a young adult because I needed a "real" job with health insurance, so now that I'm in a position to focus on making art again, I'm eager to show my work and reveal a renewed and transformed artist identity.
ARTIST STATEMENT
My richly textured and layered abstractions of cellular forms represent personal narratives about invisible disabilities. Using acrylic paint, ink, paper and printed material on canvas, panels and paper, my work is characterized by organic shapes defined with sculpted line work.
The process is driven by curiosity about the physical properties of materials, different ways of using and combining them, and variations in color, composition and scale. Materials function as a metaphor for the human body, and manipulating the body of paint is a metaphor for how I take care of my body and manage my health.
Layering and playing with transparency and opacity are a means of exploring how visibility, invisibility, exposure and concealment shape my identity and lived experience, while my existential concerns are reflected in an impromptu style that illuminates the tension between intention and results.
Lee Ann Thill, Offshoots, acrylic on canvas panel, 12x12 in.
INSPIRATION
This piece started as an experiment in composition and form, informed by my ongoing exploration of representing invisible disabilities. I have been thinking about physiological processes of adaptation and new growth, while simultaneously thinking about my development as an artist over time.
The theme, "Revealing our Magnificence", is also dual. First, I spent the first half of my life dealing with shame about my disabilities, so finding visual language to reveal all of myself is central to my work. Second, I have similarly been working through feelings about having functionally abandoned my art career aspirations as a young adult because I needed a "real" job with health insurance, so now that I'm in a position to focus on making art again, I'm eager to show my work and reveal a renewed and transformed artist identity.
ARTIST STATEMENT
My richly textured and layered abstractions of cellular forms represent personal narratives about invisible disabilities. Using acrylic paint, ink, paper and printed material on canvas, panels and paper, my work is characterized by organic shapes defined with sculpted line work.
The process is driven by curiosity about the physical properties of materials, different ways of using and combining them, and variations in color, composition and scale. Materials function as a metaphor for the human body, and manipulating the body of paint is a metaphor for how I take care of my body and manage my health.
Layering and playing with transparency and opacity are a means of exploring how visibility, invisibility, exposure and concealment shape my identity and lived experience, while my existential concerns are reflected in an impromptu style that illuminates the tension between intention and results.