Convey + Converse
Katie Kameen & Linda TienKatie Kameen Statement:
www.katiekameen.com
In my work I explore the ways in which premade materials can communicate aspects of our social behavior. I manipulate discarded plastics to remind viewers of the objects that they may take for granted. My process mimics a type of play as I discover how plastic objects can be reformed into oddly familiar configurations. These recognizable forms and individual components evoke a shared haptic experience, relating both to memory and the immediate objects that surround us. Cheap plastics were made to serve a specific purpose, and to do so with a limited lifespan. I manipulate these objects to subvert both qualities, and make these materials, so often ignored from oversaturation, visible again.
Linda Tien Statement:
www.lindatien.com
Making is a way to explore my identity and interior experience. Initially, my work focused on self-perception in terms of social expectations, pop culture and the reality of negotiating these external influences. Over the years, my work has evolved into an investigation of interstitial existence and transcending the boundaries of social constructs. I aim to prod at the emotional quality of identity and its multifarious ability to be restricting, liberating and everything in between. I have become increasingly interested in visceral relationships between the body, objects and materials, and what those connections might suggest. Using an array of traditional and found materials thoughtfully composed with the body, I intently and curiously explore identity through a process of creating and revisiting.
