Loreen Matsushima:
Fire and Ice

Fire and Ice

Artist Statement:

I marvel at nature’s wonder, but in the face of a climate change crisis, I see how the effects of climate change have fundamentally altered the environment. I make art to respond individually to these concerns, but to be a part of a collective response to advocate change. Art can make an impact in addressing the current issues affecting our environment and hopefully, the act of changing the world can be possible through the power of art.

My “Fire and Ice” series highlights extreme weather conditions from wildfires to melting polar ice caps and glaciers. The wildfires are backdrops in “Running Out of Time,” which underscores “Time” as a luxury and as an existential dilemma because we are inherently the gatekeepers and we are responsible; yet, while witnessing real events unfold, connecting knowledge into action to make changes is a conundrum. In contrast, the glaciers in my backyard in the Olympic National Park are predicted by scientists to disappear in 2070 while in the North, dramatic changes caused by warmer weather are changing the landscape. My ice landscapes are imagined but foreshadow traces of leaves, trees and signs of beavers as implications of an evolving world in the North.

The works are monoprints (on paper mounted on canvas) using multiple printmaking methodologies such as potato chip bags, applying plaster or foil to a substrate surface. I shape the foil into tree forms or manipulate the plaster to create textural surfaces. The print is the blueprint for each work to which I incorporate other media such as collage, pencil, acrylic paint, pastels, or collage. to create an outcome that is the most impactful.