{tac}

Lynda Farmer

The Arts Center Exhibitions:

• 'Portals,' Winter Show & Silent Auction, 2011

Artist's Statement, 'Tornado:

     Raku Fired/Multi Media

When I committed to participating in the Portals show, I had no idea what I would create. Portals has a certain definition, but it can be interpreted in so many different ways.

As often happens, one can start with something (or nothing) in mind, and one’s hands simply find what’s hidden and expose it. It might be a literal interpretation, or simply a manifestation of what‘s going on in our lives. Regardless of the “why” of this imagery, I couldn’t finish this project without giving a nod to that most famous of twisters, a strong memory from most of our childhoods, the movie “The Wizard of Oz”.

That said, I find it humorous that my hands found this “tornado”. It could be because my husband and I are planning a relocation to Arizona. Wow…who would want to leave Oregon. Hope we won’t regret that decision!

(“Oh, but anyway, Toto, we're home. Home! And this is my room, and you're all here. And I'm not gonna leave here ever, ever again, because I love you all, and - oh, Auntie Em - there's no place like home! - Dorothy)?!

It could be this crazy weather year

“Unusual weather we're having, ain't it?”- The Cowardly Lion).

How about that natural evolution of my craft and the fear that accompanies going a new direction

(“Frightened? Child, you're talking to one who's laughed in the face of death, sneered at doom, and chuckled at catastrophe... I was petrified!” - The Wizard of Oz).

Maybe it’s the constant barrage of politics…everything from news to FaceBook postings, all of which I avoid like the plague

(“You, my friend, are a victim of disorganized thinking. You are under the unfortunate impression that just because you run away you have no courage; you're confusing courage with wisdom.” The Wizard of Oz).

Perhaps I was having a creative block!

(Dorothy: How do you talk if you don't have a brain?
Scarecrow: Well, some people without brains do an awful lot of talking don't they?).

Or finally, it could be that I simply wanted to start creating, and was encouraged by those I love to finish it!

(A heart is not judged by how much you love; but by how much you are loved by others - The Wizard of Oz).

As you read these quotes, you may have discovered you relate more that you thought you could. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

(Shucks, folks, I'm speechless. Ha Ha!" The Cowardly Lion)