Friday, January 31, 2014

Fragile and Dangerous: The Art of Pam Reagan

She told me that she was making a mask out of crushed Christmas ornaments.  I envisioned something two dimensional, if a mask can be said to be two dimensional.  I pictured the kind of thing we might hold up to our faces, a glittery sparkle of a thing, a decoration, non-threatening.

When I finally saw her creation, I felt the paucity of my imagination.  I could not have conceived that Christmas ornaments could be transformed into something so menacing.  I would not allow this mask anywhere near my face.


 
The bits of ornaments curved off of the mask, jagged piece intersecting with jagged piece.  I refused to touch it:  it looked so fragile and dangerous.  If I hadn’t known about the creative process, would I even recognize the glass as crushed ornaments?

She has gone on to make such a wide variety of masks, each one challenging my view of what a mask should be, each one inspiring me to stretch my image of this art form. Some of them I’ve only seen in process, but even in their unfinished state, I’ve been intrigued.

I can hardly wait to see the whole show, to see how the pieces work together. 
 
If you're in the South Florida area, you can see this show.  The opening reception is today from 2-5, and it will be up until Feb. 24.  It's at O'Cinema-Wynwood 90 NW 29th St., Miami, FL 33127.

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