Kyle Dickens
Artist Statement
My textural works experiment with natural biodegradable materials, such as paper, mulch, and flour, in opposition with toxic, yet classic, artistic mediums. Through conversations with materiality, I comment on anthropogenic effects on our planet, juxtaposing rigid geometry and metallic shapes with biomorphic abstraction. I explore the micro and macro of natural formations; Aerial views of Earth’s topography, rain carving into muddy embankments, the bark of impressive oaks, and stained organelles under a microscope all influence my work. These textural organic forms find themselves shackled, spliced, suffocated, and intervened by humanity’s geometry. The persistent and exploitative habits of people ravenously dissecting the earth are pervasive, permanently scarring the landscape of our planet for our selfish desires. The right corners of agriculture cut out the land in monocultures, rigid blocks of cement dominate urban scapes with uniform slabs, overlapping sheets of factory metal define our tracts. The works exhibit this conflict. The devastated. The reclaimed. The scarred. What remains. The aesthetic quality of forms manipulated by the oppressive constructor’s wishes.
