Daniel Evans

Artist Statement

Landscape. Environment. Pictorial space. Fired clay.

I am interested in how these phenomena influence my physical, emotional and spiritual existence. As a "city boy", I relished the opportunity to visit my country cousins. I wanted my feet to be tough like theirs - to be able to run barefoot on gravel; to get lost in cornfields.

Having grown up around the blind and visually impaired, I've gained a deep appreciation for the role of non-visual senses in interpreting and navigating through the world. The blind know their environment extremely well; by knowing your environment, you're able to move around, be expressive and grow. If, for example, you're always worrying about what's in front of you, what's behind you, or if you're going to trip over something, chances are you're not going to get very far.

In my latest work, I create three-dimensional paintings - conjuring up topographical maps, views looking out into the horizon, chunks off the earth, or all of these things simultaneously. They are both visual illusions that sweep the viewer into distant landscapes as well as physical realities capable of bending sound waves and breaking backs. Ultimately, I am trying to locate myself physically, emotionally and spiritually within the imaginary and the concrete - a typical human endeavour that I'm not afraid to repeat. History, after all, tends to repeat itself like baked earth and the colour of celadon.