Melanie Jordan

Statement

I’ve been exploring a fractal of birds that appears to me whenever I stare at an object or scene. I work in both 2 and 3 dimensional mediums but for the last year I’ve focused on watercolor abstract paintings of nature. My recent work shows how this fractal of birds appears in the gradual color changes particular to watercolor paints by tracing it with a layer of ink and graphite. I’ve incorporated tiled planes into my work in an attempt to show the world as I see it and how the lines of birds are not without their own geometry. I hope to help the viewer get lost in the illusions of this fractal bird world and start a conversation about what constitutes a fractal and what makes art mathematical.

Artworks

Gridwork 03 and 05 are watercolor and ink explorations of fractal birds organized on a graphite hexagonal tiling. The tiled plane interweaves through the paint and is incorporated into each bird it touches. Allow your eyes to adjust to finding birds with first an eye and then a beak, the shape of the head, etc. With time, you’ll find every bird imaginable perched, walking or in full flight. These works are examples of how are eyes can only define a part of a fractal when they let go of seeing the whole.

See previous. I combined the discussion of both works.