Cheryl Safren

Lives and works in Valley Stream, NY, USA

Artist statement

I have been contemplating what it means to live in a society that increasingly demands vigilance. Our problems are myriad with a possible future of nuclear bombardment, raging fires, severe droughts, floods, chemical or biological scourge, malicious actors on the internet and now the loss of our democracy. When NASA unveiled the remarkable images from the James Webb Telescope, I saw something beautiful and awe inspiring. Now we know that there are about one hundred billion galaxies in our observable expanding universe. This newly confirmed knowledge suggests infinite possibilities of forms alien to us and my imagination went into overdrive. That is when I began imagining alien ‘ecosystem sculptures and paintings’ of terrestrial landmasses seen by the James Webb telescope but not yet explored. Each Remote Ecosystem mixed media painting or sculpture is comprised of many pieces and different materials. The “Wilderment” sculpture for example has 92 interconnected organic forms with different detailed textured surfaces made from wood, polymers, gravel, yarn, beads, paper, ink, paint, seeds, etc. As viewers approach each sculptural ecosystem, they take in the whole, then orbit around it in pursuit of new discoveries. Those who realize we are but a spec in the universe, can help others transition from our tribal ways of thinking and seeing.

Artwork