ABOUT THE ARTWORK
Artist Gwen Curry composed Inventory as a group of twenty unique charcoal drawings. The graphic forms are silhouettes of twenty different wildflowers native to British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest. The base of each drawing features a screen-printed dot pattern. Curry based this pattern on a charcoal drawing of a bird, which she scanned and manipulated digitally. She notes, "The bottom overlay dot pattern serves to call up the civilized and non-wild world. But the juxtaposition of soft silhouette and mechanical dot pattern is not a simple depiction of opposites. It is also about how we perceive images. The soft focus silhouettes do not give us much information (i.e.: no color or details). They seem generic yet if we knew our wildflowers, we would have no hesitation in naming them even on such scant information. The dot pattern is purposely enlarged to the point where we cannot identify what this image is yet we make sense of these types of images daily, (as in newspapers)."
This artwork was acquired for the State Art Collection in partnership with Methow Valley School District and The Evergreen State College.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Canadian artist Gwen Curry explores the natural environment. Her artworks focus on plants and animals, both living and extinct. She has worked in a wide range of media including installation, works on paper, sculpture, painting, printmaking, photography, public commissions, and design.
Curry was born in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. She received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Victoria in 1974. She received a Master of Fine Arts degree from Arizona State University in 1978. She was an Associate Professor of art at the University of Victoria from 1978 to 1994, before turning full time to her artistic practice. She is based on Vancouver Island.
ARTWORK DETAILS
Medium | Charcoal and screen print on paper |
Dimensions | 30 in x 22 1/2 in (sheet) |
ID Number | WSAC1995.267.00N |
Acquisition Method | Direct purchase |
Artist Location | British Columbia, Canada |
Location Information
Agency | The Evergreen State College |
Artwork Location | The Evergreen State College Purce lecture hall, Central main entry, Along edge of auditorium wall |
WA County | Thurston |
Placement | Interior |
Site Type | University |
Address | 2700 Evergreen Parkway NW Olympia, WA 98505 |
Geo. Coordinates | 47.072613, -122.978048 |
Before Visiting | Some artworks may be located in areas not accessible to the general public (especially in K-12 public schools). Consider contacting the site prior to a visit to ensure access. |
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