Artist Statement

By referencing vintage photographs, bittersweet nostalgic themes are explored in my art. The sourced photos are black and white, suggesting a history of days passed. In my paintings, I have added color and a fluorescent underpainting, creating tension between past and present. Passage of time is examined in these “freeze-frame” moments. Gender norms are also questioned in these historical photos. My most recent paintings, "Beautiful Uncut Hair of Graves" and “What is the Grass?” are a nod to the poetry of Walt Whitman. In “The Beautiful Uncut Hair,” the lovers embraced in a dance are being consumed by vines, representative of our temporary yet infinite time on earth. 

Similarly, other recent works, “Tandem” and "Mended Memory" include patterns of foliage enveloping the figures, like peeling wallpaper, revealing a record of those who were once there.  A sense of temporality is achieved through the slow-drying paint.  I enjoy using oils for the pentimento that can be attained by layering paint. My paintings are typically three to four feet high— approximately the size of a child, creating a perception that one could have occupied such a space once.

These multi-generational works of art are a collective expedition through existence. My work addresses and queries brief, seemingly heartening moments in time— delving into what appear to be photo-worthy joys, rites of passage, and simple contentment, which cumulatively represent an epoch.

• Joy Kloman