MITCHELL MANTLE
ART CAN BE A POWERFUL WAY TO SEARCH FOR PURPOSE AND MEANING. ANYTHING WE WONDER ABOUT, QUESTION OR EXPERIENCE CAN LATER BREACH THE SURFACE OF THE SUBCONSCIOUS TO BECOME AN ICONIC VISUAL SYMBOL. IN MY OWN WORK, FIGURES, ANIMALS, AND BUILDINGS INTERACT IN A METAPHORICAL NARRATIVE THAT IS AUTOBIOGRAPHICAL AND, HOPEFULLY, UNIVERSAL.
MY PIECES ATTEMPT TO EXPLORE AND CELEBRATE THE CERTAINTIES AND AMBIGUITIES OF PERSONALITY, RELATIONSHIPS, AND BEING. I BELIEVE IN FAILURE WHEN IT COMES TO MAKING ART. WHEN I GO TO MY STUDIO, MY GOAL IS TO COMPLETE A PIECE OF ARTWORK BEFORE I LEAVE FOR THE DAY. I DON’T ALWAYS ACCOMPLISH THIS, BUT IT PUSHES ME TO GET A LOT OF WORK DONE, AND WHEN I DO A LOT OF WORK, I LEARN MORE, EXPERIMENT MORE, AND ULTIMATELY, FIND GREATER SUCCESS. AT TIMES, I STARE AT THE CANVAS FOR HOURS AND PAINT OVER THE SAME FACE AGAIN AND AGAIN, AND AT THE END OF THE DAY, I’M STILL NOT HAPPY WITH IT. I USED TO THINK THAT THE BEST USE OF MY TIME WOULD BE IN CREATING “BEAUTIFUL” THINGS, BUT I REALIZED THAT EVEN IF I DON’T MAKE SOMETHING BEAUTIFUL, THE PROCESS ITSELF WAS THE BEST USE OF MY TIME. AS IN LIFE, IN ART, I BELIEVE THAT YOU LEARN FROM FAILURE MORE THAN SUCCESS. I THINK THAT MY ART IS A GREAT REFLECTION OF THE PROCESS I GO THROUGH. THERE ARE LAYERS AND LAYERS AND MANY DIFFERENT MARKINGS. ALL THE PIECES STARTED OUT AS ONE THING AND ENDED AS ANOTHER. EACH PIECE IS A REPRESENTATION OF FINDING SUCCESS AMONG FAILURES AND WORKING THROUGH THE HARD SPOTS TO GET TO THAT POINT.
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