M . L A R G E N T
C R E A T I V E

ARTIST STATEMENT for Out of One, Many

The title of my exhibit Out of One, Many is a twist on the motto of the United States—E pluribus unum (Out of many, one). 

As an adventurous artist, I seem to be unable to be tied down to a single technique or approach. Like the multiple personalities of Sybil, multiple personalities and image-making styles come from this one artist through a wide range of experimentation and processes. 

Much of the foundation of my artmaking is based in Jasper Johns’ famous directive, “Take an object. Do something to it. Do something else to it.” Like German artist Gerhard Richter and the very nature of photography itself, the evolution of my process-driven images may take the form of photographic constructions birthed from deliberate intervention and an indiscriminate mingling of styles. However, I am not totally immune to photojournalistic or straight photography.

 The tools that were used to reveal the unseen and to present the banal in an unfamiliar way are my camera, decades of experience with digital imaging software, and an informed intuitive spontaneity. My photo-imagery may or may not reference recognizable form. By applying abstraction techniques, I create with often unnoticed yet recognizable elements. 

 If my art has a mission, it is to challenge the viewer to consider the concepts on which my work is based and the formal qualities of my work which bears witness to my careers as photographer, graphic designer, and educator.