Urban/Organic: New Works - a Solo Exhibition
Dates of Exhibition: September 16-30, 2010.
Urban/Organic: New Works by Amanda Ladymon
Artist Statement
Originally from Dallas, TX or as I refer to it, “The Concrete Jungle”, I had very little exposure to the natural elements of the world, surrounded by buildings, highways, and strip malls. When I moved to Columbia in 2006 I became completely immersed in all the hidden treasures of natural environments there are to be found here in this quaint little town. While spending the first three years in graduate school, I regularly went hiking, mountain biking, and had other various excursions to the mountains and beaches nearby. This fueled my research into biological forms for my MFA thesis work, both through mixed media sculpture and drawings/paintings.
Now that I have entered the work world, I find I have to spend more and more time on the computer or driving to work and various meetings. Being pulled back away from my love of nature and organic environments, my time and energy are refocused back into the urban, structured world again - full of rectangular rooms, and navigating through the city grid from one destination to the next.
The color palette of this show has a personal connection with the idea of change and transition – a shifting of energy and focus to so many different things – teaching, community involvement in the arts, exhibitions, travel, etc. It also deals with personal pain and suffering – having experienced a traumatic injury over the summer I became crippled for a few months and endured much pain. With no health insurance, my health, livelihood, and healing time were drastically slowed. I feel this was something not entirely in my control but more due to the structural system within my urban world and the rules that have been set therein.
This exhibition of new works is thus a culmination of my continual struggle to survive and thrive amongst both worlds – the urban and the organic. A perfect balance may not be achievable but an understanding and appreciation of both I believe can be reached.
