Artist Statement

These works are a part of an ongoing body of work I started in 1995. It consists of drawings, which are labyrinths, and paintings derived from images as well as from life. The beginnings of these drawing processes do not deal directly with the image, but the breakup of the picture plane. I establish a series of gesture lines in pen; tentative glimpses translated with definite marks. This is the structure for subsequent marks. I do not allow myself (for the most part) to cross any lines or marks. In turn, initial lines act as containers for later lines. The result of this activity is a maze-like structure that also implies an image. I build up greater densities of marks to achieve darker values. The image I work from provides a guide to direct this activity. As the process continues the applied marks become smaller and smaller and the information brought into the drawing becomes more refined. This is a self-refining process that I am continuing to push further and further with each piece.

This is actually a process that started for me in high school: doodling in notebooks. Only now I have applied this mindless activity to achieve something.

The processes for the paintings are similar in nature to those of the drawings, but more complex due to qualities of paint and color.

This exhibition at Fulton Street has provided me with an opportunity to show earlier, more formative pieces along with the later work which is much more refined and complex.

My interests include mathematics and astrophysics. While I am more intuitive in my approach to constructing images than I am calculated, my interests in these fields relate to my desire to understand new ways of constructing things. Grand unification theories, particularly superstring theories, are incredibly creative ways of searching for an understanding of complicated constructs and continue to inspire me with this body of work.

— John Hampshire