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Christopher Hartshorne Artist Statement I am interested in the direct drama of an intense emotional moment. The figure is heroic and uses grand gestures as he is overwhelmed by invading elements. It is my attempt to recreate an internal drama - turning the mind inside out. These figures are struggling with their environments but they are psychological landscapes, self-absorbed within their own thoughts and feelings. The energies of the mind absorb them, creating webs, cages, and clouds around their physical form. It is a view of the power and energy of the human mind and also a state of interim - where the figure continuously drowns and emerges from powerful forces. Often the image is fragmented and becomes two images. This offers a physical void between prints where a lapse of time and unknown information is suggested to the viewer. What makes the narrative important is the possibilities offered and the connections a viewer makes. The work becomes personalized and each viewer is guided by the work but also connects the gaps with their own experiences and ideas. The bold, graphic quality of the woodcut adds an immediacy to the work giving the prints a solid existence in space and time. Bold contrast created from large shapes of black against white are contrasted with smaller carved lines that suggest grays which aid in pushing elements in and out of space. Moments of clarity are created by shielding areas with smaller carved lines. Its this play between boldness and subtlety, flatness and depth, that adds to the dramatic impact of the work. |
 Caught (detail) 2008 woodcut 48”x60”
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