[SISEA 1990] Artist Statement: Carol Flax — TTL SR 27

Artist Statement

I began this work at a time when I was attempting to reconcile being an artist with also being a mother of teenage daughters. It quickly became obvious to me that the computer was the perfect medium for dealing with the issues inherent in this reconciliation both conceptually and visually. The textures, repetition and layering of life are perfectly imitated by the computer. Reality is mirrored, at the same time it is altered, our assumptions questioned.

As I tested the limits of this new medium, I also tested the boundaries of bringing my relationship with my children to my art. While examining issues of parent/child. I have felt more and more the need to look in the other direction at my own history. I have extended my work to include family snapshots and other found images. The work now extends many years, covering four generations of family.

This work is created with a TARGA 16 computer graphics board using TPS software on an IBM compatible AT computer. I begin with various types of input, ranging from live video, to tape, to photographs, to found objects. As I gather visual, audio and other materials in life I store them away, knowing at some point they could end up as a part of my art. The computer is the perfect medium for this method of working, allowing for random input and integrated output. My final images are high resolution ink jet prints on 24*30 or 30*40 paper [presumably inches, editor].