Layer Upon Layer: Donna Forma
Opening Reception Thursday May 12, 6-8pm
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| Donna Forma in her studio in Canton, CT |
Layer Upon Layer: Donna Forma
How does the robin know the way its nest should be built?
Man has long puzzled over instinctive behaviors and organic structures. Connecticut
sculptor Donna Forma takes a unique approach to exploring Nature’s secrets.
Respect for the environment fuels her creative processes as she constructs
pieces inspired by forms observed in outdoor settings unencumbered by man’s handiwork.
The Flinn Gallery at Greenwich Library will exhibit her work in Layer Upon Layer: Donna Forma, its final
show of the season, from May 12 to June 22.
Donna Forma’s awe for Nature’s majesty and power is evident
in many of her works whose size dwarfs the human scale. Yet she explores and
examines the intricate layers that make up the larger whole and constructs artworks
that mimic and accentuate objects observed in the woodland environment. Her artistic
sense is guided by reflection on man’s relationship to nature. “My pieces are
metaphors of life.” To this end she has given much attention to the exploration
of hive, “nest, cocoon, shelter” and has woven, sewed, and wired layers of organic
materials “through manipulated design” into creations that suggest surroundings
that offer protection and respite from the elements. Like the robin the artist
has no blueprint but follows her aesthetic instincts to produce texturally
appealing sculptures which she describes as “overlapping layer upon layer,
emerging into shapes of strength and beauty.”
The paradox reflected in her work is the struggle between
nature and man to manage the environment. “Knowing we cannot really have
control, but trying to have an important effect, we work in symbiosis with
nature.” Donna Forma is ever mindful of the structural complexity contained in
apparently simple forms, and her work draws attention to the parallels to our
human condition. An apparently fragile component proves to be unexpectedly
strong, while a weighty object reveals itself to be light and airy. The artist
wrote” We all carry secrets, knowingly, unknowingly. One hardly ever unearths
completely, after years of ‘knowing’ we often learn more, not unlike a plant,
the roots and dirt; the very structure that carries the food and gives
foundation often is not seen.”
Working from her rural studio in Canton, CT, Donna Forma is
able to make an instant connection to Louis Kahn’s phrase “Design consults
Nature” as she formulates and executes her pieces. Form, texture, and materials
influence her creations and her willingness to experiment generates excitement
allowing her to “play with nature” while working with her. “My work is always
evolving as natural forms do. I move from wood to copper to glue to mica to
threads to handmade paper, string, algae, horsehair, dog fur, roots, seaweed.etc.”
And depending on the materials being employed, they may be cut, formed,
drilled, sewn, wired, lashed, strapped, slashed” or woven in layers. “The
ultimate structure is symbolic to and of life.”
