Scatterlings

Scatterlings© is a collection of self-directed enchantment art which combines actual foliage with watercolor and color pencil mediums. Hidden among the actual and rendered foliage are an enchanted assortment of Scatterlings; mythical animals and fairies. These one-of-a-kind folk art pieces take up to a year to complete as flowers and leaves are collected, pressed, preserved and finally hidden within a vision that evolves continually. (Mixed Media; Pressed Foliage, Watercolor, Colored Pencil, Pen and Ink on Handmade Paper) Bird's Eye View; Matted and Framed; 40"w x 28"h. See more here. Original: Contact for pricing - or - Purchase 11"x17" print Fading Light. Matted and Framed; 40"w x 28"h. See more here. Original: Contact for pricing - or - Purchase 11"x17" print. Cascading Colors; Matted and Framed; 40"w x 28"h. See more here and here. Original: Contact for pricing Limited run prints are sold out. Beyond the Visible Terrain Matted and Framed; 40"w x 28"h. See more here Original: Contact for pricing - or - Purchase 11"x17" print In Search of a Miracle Matted and Framed; 40"w x 28"h. See more here Original: Contact for pricing - or - Purchase11"x17" print Flights of Childhood Matted and Framed; 40"w x 28"h. See more here Original: Contact for pricing - or - Purchase 11"x17" print Unscene Matted and Framed; 40"w x 28"h. See more here Original: Contact for pricing - or - Purchase11"x17" print Afternoon Swim Matted and Framed; 40"w x 28"h. See more here Original: Contact for pricing - or - Purchase11"x17" print Self Portrait Matted and Framed; 40"w x 28"h. See more here Original: NFS. Prints: NFS Sanctuary of Grace Matted and Framed; 40"w x 28"h. See more here Original: NFS. Purchase11"x17" print Chasing The Wind Matted and Framed; 40"w x 28"h. See more here Original: Contact for pricing - or - Purchase11"x17" print Yesterday's Dream Matted and Framed; 40"w x 28"h. See more here Original: Contact for pricing - or - Purchase11"x17" print

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Jacquelyn L. Berl (also known under the artistic monicker “Ascender“, see more works at her site) is a versatile and prolific artist with a strong drive towards finding an original signature style. She creates art with a seemingly unlimited assortment of media, fusing various schools and trends into a conglomerate body of work. I would categorize her style as gravitating towards the surreal, often with fabulous qualities; it characterizes in various degrees her mixed media works, collages, ink, watercolor and oil paintings. To my mind Berl achieves best results with the more combinative efforts, and while the more traditional artwork exhibits engaging pristine and figurative qualities, it is in the more complex and “dirty” pieces that her creative potential finds a unique outlet.

Viewing the “Scatterlings (c),” which, according to the artist, “combine actual foliage with watercolor and color pencil mediums” is a rich and magical experience — not surprising considering the “mythical animals and fairies” populating these pieces. In a way it replicates the ritual of reading a fairy tale to a child: each night the infant would ask for another reading of the same story and each time the story would sound different. It is possible to see each scatterling as a meta-illustration of a fairy-tale, existing or not. Perhaps even more radically, each piece is indeed a fairy tale, only of a visual kind. This would make sense considering the arduous process, taking up to a year, of making (”writing”) them.

Technically they may be seen as Pollock’s logical continuation: he painted while putting the canvas on the floor, letting gravity participate in the process, and Jaquelyn similarly alludes to gravity, which forces the leaves and the plants she uses down to earth. Thus she may be proposing an idealized artistic view of the physical world around us, everyday objects being the media and the ground they rest upon the surface. But even without this allegory, her artwork bears a purely visual resemblance to abstract expressionism, all the while retaining the concrete form of the inserted magical characters — the result is a fascinating surreal mishmash.

Clever use of perspective, compositional rhythm and color toning, combined with actual flora creates a bewitching effect of three-dimensionality. I cannot decide whether the artist panders to the younger audience by incorporating real objects, seeking to emulate depth with actual depth on the paper, but it certainly appeals to the child in me, evoking an inner smile. I also think that it is this kind of works of art that more than usual encourages children to want to become artists — it could be the appeal of using objects found in nature, something every playful kid does as a matter of fact anyway.

Elijah at Art & Critique

 

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