In this project, Heidi Overhill explores her own home as a case study of the roles played by objects in the expression of self; as a microcosm of meaning in material culture. By examining her different kinds of collections through contemporary methodologies of museum collections management, she seeks to better understand herself, the collections, and the methodology of museum collecting in general. The exhibition focuses on the accessioning of the permanent collections, and provides a gift shop where visitors may purchase postcards and other souvenirs.

Within the context of relational art, the ongoing series, Maturity Playground, incorporates pre-fabricated playground components used as sculptural material. The use of slides, swings, trampolines, and merry-go-rounds has been disrupted. These structures are manipulated through placement and colour to the point where they become socially tense or awkward situations for adults. Playground structures in the art gallery subvert conventional notions of art, the understanding of appropriate behavior in an art environment and the understanding of play as an aesthetic element. Such re-placement creates a disruption to the psychological associations attached to the activity of the object. In this new context, the works allow participation and promote the idea that play can be a model for co-operative behavior.

My paintings are done from my memory of nature experienced at different moments in time and place in Canada and Europe, discovered during my frequent travels. Colour, light, movement, smell and sound recalled in memory, lead to abstract formulations in which an expressive softness is mixed with harsh reality.

This paper is intended to serve as a supporting document for the exhibition Word Birds that was held at the Render Gallery at the University of Waterloo, April 22-27, 2008. The drawing and sculpture in this exhibition attempt to address the complex relationship humans have with animals and the ways we have charged them with symbolic and anthropomorphic characteristics. The work examines the human tendency to observe, name, and ascribe meaning to animals and speaks to the connection between natural history and human nature. The narrative element of the work is derived from a variety of sources including observation, philosophical speculation, and literary sources.

In this project, Heidi Overhill explores her own home as a case study of the roles played by objects in the expression of self; as a microcosm of meaning in material culture. By examining her different kinds of collections through contemporary methodologies of museum collections management, she seeks to better understand herself, the collections, and the methodology of museum collecting in general. The exhibition focuses on the accessioning of the permanent collections, and provides a gift shop where visitors may purchase postcards and other souvenirs.

Within the context of relational art, the ongoing series, Maturity Playground, incorporates pre-fabricated playground components used as sculptural material. The use of slides, swings, trampolines, and merry-go-rounds has been disrupted. These structures are manipulated through placement and colour to the point where they become socially tense or awkward situations for adults. Playground structures in the art gallery subvert conventional notions of art, the understanding of appropriate behavior in an art environment and the understanding of play as an aesthetic element. Such re-placement creates a disruption to the psychological associations attached to the activity of the object. In this new context, the works allow participation and promote the idea that play can be a model for co-operative behavior.

Uncontrollable Beauty examines the role beauty and taste play in commoditization and monetization of art within contemporary Western culture. This body of work is predicated on the notion of ‘good taste’ and explores this complex issue through the history and medium of painting and the concept of ‘decorativeness’ as they relate to modernist criticism and commercial industry.

Abstract The paintings in White Noise are a response to temporal lighting conditions that occur at night. A discussion of sensory affect demonstrates how perception is inextricably connected to the body’s sensory capabilities such as sound and touch. By examining Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s theory of phenomenology and looking at Gestalt Psychology based experiments it is made clear that seeing whole and complete forms in the world is a product of embodied perceptual experience. I recall early experiences of being affected by light describing the optical illusion of the afterimage and then move into the everyday perceptions that inform my current painting practice. The painting studio process is examined as a beacon from which to reconcile the affecting nuances of observed lighting at night. I discuss the importance of allowing trial, error and patience to take place while making paintings to in turn seek out optimal colour relationships and shape interaction. By developing a specific painting vocabulary that responds to the colour, texture and sound associated with perceptual experiences I reconcile through the abstract process of painting how affecting experiences can be re-presented and reinvented onto the canvas.

Uncontrollable Beauty examines the role beauty and taste play in commoditization and monetization of art within contemporary Western culture. This body of work is predicated on the notion of ‘good taste’ and explores this complex issue through the history and medium of painting and the concept of ‘decorativeness’ as they relate to modernist criticism and commercial industry.

Abstract The paintings in White Noise are a response to temporal lighting conditions that occur at night. A discussion of sensory affect demonstrates how perception is inextricably connected to the body’s sensory capabilities such as sound and touch. By examining Maurice Merleau-Ponty’s theory of phenomenology and looking at Gestalt Psychology based experiments it is made clear that seeing whole and complete forms in the world is a product of embodied perceptual experience. I recall early experiences of being affected by light describing the optical illusion of the afterimage and then move into the everyday perceptions that inform my current painting practice. The painting studio process is examined as a beacon from which to reconcile the affecting nuances of observed lighting at night. I discuss the importance of allowing trial, error and patience to take place while making paintings to in turn seek out optimal colour relationships and shape interaction. By developing a specific painting vocabulary that responds to the colour, texture and sound associated with perceptual experiences I reconcile through the abstract process of painting how affecting experiences can be re-presented and reinvented onto the canvas.