Jayne Lawrence

Over the last 20 years, my visual vocabulary has come to include insects, plant life, the human figure, and architectural components. The insects represent “the other.” They are communal while instinctual—a counterpoint to human social organizations. They symbolize transformation, endurance, and survival. The human elements are disarticulated and combined with other natural forms to remind us that our survival is based on a symbiotic relationship with the elements and creatures around us. The architectural components represent civilization: place, land, culture, and practices. For example: a box may reference a hive /community; floor plans suggest home/ family unit/shelter, and a flying buttress is symbolic of physical, emotional, or communal support.
I use generational idioms and fables to reexamine today’s cultural and social attitudes, focusing on gender identity, the attraction and repulsion display, and survival of the individual in relation to its environment. Each work (drawing or sculpture) is a non- linear narrative containing a multi-faceted character that is the embodiment of adaptability—protagonists of tales turned on end—characters living on the outskirts of social acceptability.