Defensive

Ink, Graphite and Colored Pencil on Paper

The central area of this work is comprised of overlapping, obscured words that I wrote in pastel. The words are from a 2005 study reported in the Guardian of the most offensive words in television. After writing the words, I outlined the contour(s) and extended these lines, in reverse, to the outer parts of the paper. Within these contours, I created patterns and forms that reference images and texts that are both clear and hidden – messages embedded within images. I thought of this duality as a metaphor for interpersonal interaction, where our impulses are hidden within casual communication, yet our facial and body language reveal complex patterns of thought.