Angela Hur

My work explores a visceral feeling of atmosphere. It captures the energy of one simple, fleeting moment in time. It questions the relationships between light and dark, mistake and solidarity, illusion and significance. I have created this series of work to demonstrate the beauty and difficulty in daily maintenance. Midway through the semester, I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety. Since my late teens, I had begun to find that simple tasks were draining, almost unbearable to proceed with. Chores, like brushing my teeth, getting out of bed, and showering seemed like immeasurable feats. This diagnosis was a realization that I could manage these things, just like many people do who struggle with the same illness. My partner helped me get through this. The ability to witness him taking care of himself helped me to do the same. I wanted to capture these small, inspiring moments in time, so that I could go back to them. But not only remember them, to feel them as they happened. This pursuit led me to mark making, a strategy that helped me to capture the atmosphere of a single moment in time. This technique is exhibited as a manifestation of gestural energy, and makes the ambience of the drawing the most important and poignant aspect of it. This building of tone allows the viewer the ability to feel the “air” of the drawing and be able to experience it in a way that goes beyond viewing solid forms. The loose mark and energy of these pieces deviate strongly from what my normal work consists of. Usually, my work is tied strictly to the subject of the drawings and less consideration is taken to the technique or medium used. However, for this series, I did not want the subject to be the forefront of the drawing, I wanted the perception of space and air to be the first thing felt by the observer. I wanted the drawings to feel vigorous, passionate, and instant to capture the glance of the viewer.