K. Daphnae Koop opens at Private Art 2, Key North, 515 1st Ave. NE, Mpls. Thursday June 21st, 5-7 pm.

Artist Statement

I am a painter who finds my inspiration in the richly textured surfaces of carved wood. My work is built of hand-carved “canvasses”, and layered with paint, color washes, metal leaf, powders, and varnishes. The densely carved surfaces of re-purposed woods are the first chapter of the story that is then built upon them with layer after layer of painted and pooled color and finishes. As the titles would suggest, each of my paintings carries with it a theme or story, one which is written in it even as the layers are poured.



Each step in the process of creating these works demands time-intense labor and an expulsion of creative ideas and contextual energy. There is a physicality to the assembly of the wood and carving its surface. The repetitive action, honing each plank and block is as meditative as it is physically demanding. The sculpted surface takes layer upon layer of color wash, metal leaf or varnish before the finished painting reveals itself. All the while, the energy of context and life circumstances is being absorbed and cured in with the pigments.



In my latest series of paintings, an element of assemblage has come in with the addition of inlaid streams of shattered auto glass. The tiny shards glisten and sparkle, while the painted wood catches light like ripples of water. The glittery attraction of the refracting light betrays the sharp glass edges and heavy wooden form. The inherent paradox of light and weight, the marriage of nonrepresentational surface and solid foundation gives these pieces a presence not found in traditional painting.



My current body of sculpted, assembled paintings is a culmination of all of these experiences, and is as much a combination of time and materials as it is of inspiration. Creating each piece is my attempt to grasp that final magic amalgamation of challenge, depth and conveyance of voice that makes art a vital part of my life. My aim with this work is to somehow, without pictorializing, invoke a memory or glimmer of recognition, and a sense that the human experience is ultimately contained within the beyond.