Kellie Lehr

I am interested in the space where the natural and digital worlds overlap, more specifically, the connection and isolation we feel when navigating these worlds. The plethora of social media platforms has enabled individuals to connect to a wide range of people virtually but disconnect from the physical world. While someone may have hundreds or thousands of Facebook friends, twitter, Instagram or Snapchat followers, they are keeping personal interface at arm’s length. The creates a paradox where the more separated and disconnected a person feels, the more they strive to connect in that isolation. My work questions the role of disconnection in relation to connection.

My source material often comes from the natural landscape and the elements I integrate that reference the digital world are not literal. Within each painting, the forms, as well as the negative space, become structures with patterns to be explored and questioned. The building up of mark and color within a painting and the removal of paint as I go along relates both to the formal construction of my paintings and the ways in which individuals address their connections to others. The result is an image that lies somewhere between reality and fantasy, digital and natural, and confusion and clarity.