When I started to make these complicated wall-hung relief pieces, I had no idea that I would eventually title them Towards the Light. The title is a metaphor for my Mother’s death, which occurred on April 29, 1999. 

The twelve works are each made in three steps. The canvas was made by gluing canvas to a wood frame which was mounted to the outer frame. I made an image with oil pastels on the canvas. That drawing had to be sprayed several times with a fixative to stabilize the oil pastels. The arcs were then screwed in various arrangements on top of the canvas section. I painted the outer wood frame after the canvas part was mounted onto it and the arcs before screwing them to the canvas. The screws were sunk into the MDO (the material used for the arcs) and those holes needed to be filled before I could seal the piece. I do remember intending that each piece was to be sealed so well that nothing would ever decay.

The imagery is built on the interplay between a flat and drawn donut-shaped arc and the slimmer more delicate three-dimensional arc. An expressivity grew steadily from piece to piece, demonstrating that I had become more confident in my capacity to build them.

Below are the pieces in the proper order. When I photographed them, the shadows became an important aspect of the picture.