Mark Kaufman
(Wilmington, DE)
Two Women in Grey, Woodcut, 18"x11.5"
The human figure is something with which we are intimately familiar. It can evoke in us deep emotional, sexual and psychological reactions. These responses to the human form are personal, secret and yet universal. In the depiction of something so capable of conjuring our deepest fantasies lie immense possibilities for exploring who and what we are. I discover that I have been exploring the tension between the exposed and hidden; between a desire for intimacy and self-protection; between sorrow and an ache for connection. This image of two women who are connected is a departure for me in that they are connected. While I begin with aesthetic rather than the narrative, I wonder what story this image tells the viewer? How are the figures connected? Does the one shield the other or invite the viewer to join with their connection? For me the figures are connected not only to each other, but to the wood with which the image is made. The medium of a woodcut appeals to me because of its immediacy. It connects the human form and its stories to the textures and dynamic of the wood itself. Does the wood contribute to the emotionally dialogue I seek with you, my audience? I hope the viewers ask what their response may reveal about themselves and can joyfully enter into a collaborative act of creation.