A Very Tangential Note

[For those of you from my class, this relates (very) tangentially to my notes on my own work in relation to Writing One.  For anyone not from my class, this may still be interesting. For the sake of readers not in Art 620 and for my own stream of consciousness, sections of writing assignments may be duplicated here in this and later posts.]

My art comes from a world in my head. Maybe that's not the best way to phrase it, but that's the working title.  Two decades of reading science fiction and fantasy children's stories, novels, novellas, and comics have seeped into my subconscious and play a heavy role in the development of my artistic concepts.  For anyone not familiar with the nuances of science fiction/fantasy, a recent NASA interviewer/blogger has done a very nice article on the topic:
http://astrophysics.gsfc.nasa.gov/outreach/podcast/wordpress/index.php/2012/08/20/jillians-blog-relating-science-and-science-fiction-at-otakon/

The art I make - my Beasties and their world - exists not as an artistic exploration of hard science but as an exploration of possibility.  I'm looking at extant mutations within past and present taxonomies (primarily small mammals, plants, and reptiles) and extrapolating from there.  Some questions I try to ask or answer in this body of work include, What would happen if animals had evolved differently?  Could these two families or classes, kingdoms even, be combined in an at least somewhat plausible creature?  What is the purpose of this creature in its environment, and how does the larger ecosystem work around its inhabitants?

I am under no illusion that I will answer every question, and indeed I will pose more both to myself and the viewer.  My Beasties are first and foremost creatures of possibility, and not probability.  I will think my job well done to inspire curiosity and creativity within the viewer.

~LFM