Mirrors of the Subconscious
Mirrors of the subconscious: Our images, passions, and individual perceptions are mere reflections, a mirror-image of who we are and who we want to be. Since the subconscious is uncontrolled thought, it can be altered, somewhat like a reflection in a mirror. The mirror-image only reflects from left to right, but never from top to bottom. Images that appear left in real life will appear right in the mirror-image. Our subconscious, our individual thought processes, are similar to the mirror-image because they only reflect the subconscious (uncontrolled thoughts) through the conscious (controlled thoughts). Both our subconscious as well as our conscious manufacture true and false images simultaneously. The resulting representation solely depends on one’s own subjective reality. Mirrors are man-made manifestations of one’s own psyche. My series, entitled “Mirrors of the Subconscious,” is just that, my uncontrolled thought processes, distorted, through a controlled environment (conscious thought), in a constant state of flux.
Process:
I begin each of my digital works of art by drawing, painting, and/or tossing dye onto canvas. I then scan the images onto my computer, altering them with a variety of computer programs. My mixed-media works evolve when I take the digital images, modify them, and then restructure them on canvas by using acrylic paints, metal, torn or ripped paper or canvas, and various other objects. (My predilection for abstract art is revealed in the preponderance of grids and fragmentation viewed in my artwork.)This technique presents viewers with my personal mode of expression, because it symbolizes, to me, the endless circle of life. Moreover, the digital and mixed-media possibilities invite viewers to interpret the works in fruitful and multiple ways, by offering infinite possibilities without limitations.
Influences:
My art is an expression of my experiences which have manifested in a collective process. In my adult life, I have been highly influenced by brothers Doug and Mike Starn, by whom I had been introduced to the notion that photography, same as painting, could have a tactile component. As such, I have incorporated texture into my works by surrounding the torn digital prints with paints, sand, and other materials. Other artists whom I admire are Chuck Close and Henri Matisse, individuals faced with human frailty whom did not let their physical setbacks cripple their creative energies; they overcame adversity, and, in the process of doing so, became innovators.
Contact info: McGarelGraphics@sbcglobal.net
more of my images can be viewed at mcgarelgraphics: http://web.me.com/dmcga456/McGarel_Graphics/Welcome.html
