SOLO EXHIBITIONS
In the Fold – September 9 to October 30, 2021
Chris Natrop, photo by Patrick Grandaw
“My studio practice has centered on the act of cutting paper. Executed free form and exclusively with a knife, it has evolved into a stream-of-consciousness drawing technique, a meditation of repetition and reduction. Immediate cutting decisions and the intentional lack of pre-planning allows for the discovery of ambiguous silhouetted imagery that surface as interconnected landscapes.
While specific meanings vary from piece to piece, the underlying thrust of my work is based on the evolving concept of confronting a new type of landscape reborn out of a futuristic vision of an annihilated land. Although I believe the world is a glorious chance-evolution, the pressure placed on it through human intervention puts it in a precarious situation that I fear may force it to unravel. I counter my existential foreboding by offering fantastical visions of future days.
The work is cut paper drawings that either stand alone or are translated into a variety of other rigid materials. Both the original paper cutouts and fabricated objects are arranged in floor to ceiling combinations interrelating as a unified whole. The addition of directed lighting and projected motion graphics transforms these collections into immersive, multifaceted environments. Full-scale installations become complete worlds once the viewer enters the scene.”
