ARTIST STATEMENT: Recent work: Boucherouite Suite ( 2013): Building on the elemental language of painting: A staccato mark, a woven surface, or colorful tonal range, I aim to connect with the origins of abstraction, particularly concerning the linked history of tapestry and painting. For example, early modernist movements such as Poitilism and Impressionism can credit their color technique to “The Bezold Effect”, a method of optical blending discovered by Wilhelm Von Bezold, a 19th Century carpet designer. Similarly, my work is inspired by the compositional approach of Boucherouite (boo-shay –REET) Tapestries of Morocco, which utilize scraps to create vibrant riffs on conventional carpet motif. My paintings, seek to interweave traditions of painterly abstraction, while sometimes including collage or batik elements, in combination with my own sensibility. -- Molly Herman