Dorothy O’Connor
Georgia
Artist Statement Submitted 2015
My ongoing series "Scenes" centers around transforming spaces into fantastical landscapes which frequently utilize elements of nature and the natural world to tell a story. Each concept creates a sort of conceptual autobiography. Building these life-sized installations also allows me to literally live inside my own imagination and satisfies the need to create a more aesthetically pleasing reality. Each project takes months to complete, allowing me to fully immerse myself in its meticulous details. I enjoy creating many of the components in each set by hand: crocheting the ocean, crafting hundreds of paper birds, weaving a ceiling of roots from jute, etc. Learning a new skill each time I build a new scene helps to keep the process fresh.The scenes are captured with an 8x10 camera and a photograph remains the lasting imprint. Opening the scenes as tableau vivants allows an audience to experience them as I do but to add their own interpretations making the story a shared experience.
