Dillon Yeh
In the Islamic culture; it is often forbidden to depict figures in their art. No objects. No landscapes. And not even people can be portrayed. How can art exist? Does this mean that there is no art? No. Because instead, Islamic art uses patterns and words. I love patterns. Using a technique called stippling; I try to use the patterns of dots to create an ever-moving feel in my works. Everything is static. Nothing is still. But what intrigued me most were the Islamic use of words in art. Words are used in place of pictures. Words are given the same power that pictures have. Because just like pictures; words can have unlimited potential. I began to study words, not in context of literature or language arts, but for the value of words themselves. Inspired by the Surrealist painter Magritte who liberated words from their meanings, I began to play with how a word sounded; the make up of the word; and how that word looked and shaped. How does our society give words different preconceived connotations? How do different cultures give words different connotations? My concentrations attempt to explore these questions.