Elusive Muse loves Hannah Ward. Her work is so unique and beautiful. You can learn more about Hannah or see more of her amazing work on her website or Saatchi Art page.
Website Link: http://www.hannahwardstudio.com/
Saatchi Art Page: http://www.saatchiart.com/HannahWard
And now a word from Hannah….
My work addresses the intricacy of human unease as we search for a sense of purpose. My recent bodies of work are informed by cross-cultural spiritual beliefs and practices in relation to the natural world. They are evocations of the mysterious quality of folklore, mythology, and religious artifacts. Culturally, humans have developed a need for story telling and the construction of objects and images. My creations fulfill my tangible desire to depict unexplainable concepts and those larger than the mere individual.
The forest wildlife and taxidermy that I find myself surrounded by serve as my vocabulary and iconography. My work depicts unsettling, isolated creatures, along with peculiar conglomerations of the physical body. They exist in a state of purgatory, a mysterious flux. Suspension and tension allow my contorted manifestations to weave a story that is simultaneously about formation and decay. They are opposing and dependent.
These characters are often mutated, rich in sensual color, and reinterpret the roles of our ancestral origins. They speak of the sensations of intimacy, unease, anxiety, and grief without context. Behind the uncertainty of their appearance, with matted and layered fur and sickly eyes, these characters convey a story of vulnerability and affection within their haunted world.
I am interested in exploring the relationship between the frailties of the tangible body and the resilience of the spirit. Our environment has an unyielding capacity for miraculous fertility and cruel fatality. Equilibrium is maintained through the necessity of sacrifice. It is a graceful struggle between the sensations of control and surrender.
My sculptures refer to the ancient tradition of objects acting as mediators, assigned with properties, power, and energy. They are sacred offerings, both cursed and blessed. Such vessels explore our desire for containment, placation, and submission in order to assign meaning.
These drawings, paintings, and objects are images of blameless impermanence and duality. They justify actions of strength and tenderness despite necessity and apathy. My works are extensions of the acts of ritual as we pursue the sacred; they are questions of devotion.
