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ABOUT THE ARTIST
ARTIST - MAKER - BAY AREA NATIVE
Carly is an Oakland, California based artist with deep roots in Northern California.
"My purpose is to make things and share the things that I make. It brings me joy and connection. I find inspiration and self-motivation in sharing and understanding how others might integrate my work into their world.
Making art is a must for me. It was my major in college, but also art is a goal I am always striving to embody. So, my purpose is to make art everyday and share it.
I have always had a desire to work in paper-mâché but for some reason, since 4th grade, I didn't made it a priority. Until Halloween, 2020. Like so many of us, making sense of this moment in time while we looked to new things to do or perhaps old things that brought us joy and a sense of security.
I had a bit more space than I had before, so I renewed a passion I had for paper-mâché. I created a few Halloween decorations and it grew from there. The bowls were first made from balloons and with each series I refined my process, expanded my working space and have given energy and intention to my art that had been lacking for so long.
I love what I'm making and feel lucky to be able to share it with others!"
ABOUT THE ART
On a Mission to Make Beautiful Things
My purpose is to make things and share the things that I make. It brings me joy and connection. I find inspiration and motivation through sharing and understanding how others might integrate my work into their world.
Why Make Art?
Art is a must for me. It was my major in college, but also art is a goal I am always striving to embody. So, my purpose is to make art everyday and share it with others.
WHAT INSPIRES ME?
Nature certainly inspires me with all its shapes, colors and patterns. present day and vintage magazines. Old movies, especially any movie that takes me to a far off place. My heritage is Scandinavian, Filipino and Mexican and those folk art traditions are imbued in my art as well. And finally, as a lifelong sewer I appreciate the steps in the process of making and the pride of creating something from almost nothing.
The medium in which I work is almost exclusively papier-mâché and acrylic paints. Though my practice has been heavily influenced by studying ceramics. I use to build large ceramic sculptures. And much like the clay, the papier-mâché feels heavenly slipping through my hands.
What Is My Process?
To begin, my process is iterative. Each piece I produce is unique, whimsical and inspired in the moment and a plan is rarely part of my game plan. I have a rough idea but know that it can have many paths to completion.
Practically, I have developed a few steps that help me make many items concurrently. Each piece may take anywhere from 20-60 hours to complete as drying layers of wet paper can be the most time consuming. I develop a shape, add pieces together, work with cardboard to get an outlined shape to enhance my existing vessel shape and then continue until I feel the weight and shape are to my liking.
I let the vessels dry for several weeks before sanding any rough edges, prep with a gesso base coat. From there I begin the painting process - I start making marks and build layers, sometimes i cover over and sometimes I add. I may rework a piece several times. but once it feels right I seal with an acrylic gloss paint.