Kevin Buist

BFA Artist Statement

April, 2006

My work focuses on tensions between order and chaos, specifically: history vs. mythology, logic vs. intuition, and narrative clarity vs. ambiguity. This project has often taken the form of works on paper. These pieces frequently appropriate elements from a variety of sources: wildlife guidebooks, clothing catalogues, comic books, etc. The preexisting connotations of the source material are exploited. For example, a collaged image of a snake speaks of its original scientific context, its cultural and moral implications, and its new place within the narrative of the work. Many of the works on paper operate in the pictorial space of a page. Like the source material, these images can function as pages of a larger narrative or catalogue, meant to be read in a tactile manner by one person at a time. Unlike the source material, however, I do not intend these pieces to divulge a cohesive story or a comprehensive catalogue of information. By deleting, adding, and abstracting I seek to build ambiguous pseudo-narratives pieced together from bits of existing cultural texts.

Some of the work engages the space of painting rather than the page. Many of the same concerns still exist, but are manifested in singular images. The paintings shift between depictions of epic events, explanatory charts, and pure abstraction. Particular interest is paid to creation myths, cataclysm, and the fear and fascination associated with the unknown.

Much of the work also focuses on characterization and signifiers used to create identity. Animals, colors, and patterns function as insignias, bestowing their perceived attributes on those who identify with them. Flag-like striped banners featuring hybrid beasts are not images as much as they are insignias.

In short, my work seeks to pick up pieces of existing archetypes and stories and re-assemble them in jarring, sometimes humorous ways. The resulting conglomerations highlight previously unseen tensions, weaving a new hybrid-mythology.