ALIDA FISH: NEW WORK

ALIDA FISH NEW WORK

ARTIST STATEMENT

Growing up in Bermuda, a verdant island full of colorful flowers and energetic plant life, has, over the years, very much influenced my choice of subject matter. When I started on this particular series, “Volunteers,” I was focused on the elegance of line and movement found primarily in grasses. More recently, I have been remembering the days when I was a teenager and would work with my mother decorating floats for Bermuda’s Easter Parade. We would spend days with basket loads of cuttings like lilies, oleanders, and bay grape leaves, gluing and weaving them into the wire structure of our parish float.

These memories have prompted me to rethink how I am using plants in my pictures. My photographs have always had a tendency to suggest a shallow space with an emphasis on surface and line. Additionally, I often extend the photographic information by hand applying toners, inks, and graphite. Lately, I have been experimenting with more stylized and colorful studio setups. The images are moving away from presentations of botanical specimens and leaning toward the possibilities of more formal abstraction.