Toolmarks

Toolmarks is a series of drawings made from ink and metal detritus. To create the work, I used silicone sheets dipped in ink and found metal objects. I explored the mark-making abilities of these vastly different materials by intuitively using them as artistic tools by stamping, dragging, pushing, swinging, and dropping them onto paper.

The silicone made thin and organic marks while the metal embossed the paper with its ridges and sharp edges. Layering the marks consecutively allowed the marks, materials, and my body to inform and be informed by the others in a constant negotiation. This created a feedback loop, a collection of traces that varied according to the material properties and applications of the objects. Traces and intentional or unintentional mark-making are used in my process to show the kinetic and abstract terms through which materials interact when making art.

Each drawing reveals my movements as a multisensory, responsive and thinking being in the act of making, a performance of artistic labour and material exploration. My creative process centres around exploring the relationship between materials and the marks they create. I am interested in how marks reveal the interaction between an artist and the artwork. I intentionally and unintentionally create marks as I work, which serve as a record of my creative process. These marks are a visual representation of the physical and abstract nature of my artistic expression.