# data[].attributes.body
...I can now recognize and accept; primarily ‘myself ‘and my ‘work’ are one and the same.....

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Raymond Saa

Maplewood, NJ
1997 MFA Grant Recipient
Artist's Statement (2013)
My work and the way I think about it has naturally evolved over the years.

There are many more aspects of myself that I can now recognize and accept; primarily 'myself 'and my 'work' are one and the same. My work is not 'about something' it is a reflection of me and therefore of what inspires me. The visual, auditory, and sensory minutiae that compete for daily attention is the inspiration to work. The way this is achieved is what my work is 'about'.

I am not a literary person I am a visual person. This seems obvious but often explanations are demanded in words and for artists this can be a struggle if not a contradiction, as our forte is to explain the world visually and more often than not our weakness is words.

It was pointed out to me recently that the scale of my work often enough correlates with human dimensions; arms width and body height, this observation pleased me as painting and drawing for me is very physical and about the process and when I'm working well, very instinctive. I usually work on several pieces concurrently which means that I can ponder on one work whilst continuing to work on another and in that way they also inform or cross pollinate each other.

I have always made charcoal drawings and I am currently working on sculptural sewn paper works that involve the deconstruction of drawings and their reformation into layered sewn pieces. Larger sculptural work follows the same instincts as drawing and often involves drawing. Recent pieces involve layering of painted wooden panels into wall works.

I don't feel that my work is especially conceptual but I am very influenced by the resilience yet delicacy of botanical subjects particularly when it comes in direct conflict with urbanity. There is something inevitable but equally magical about a tender vine pushing its was through tarmacadam and enveloping a man-made structure. I hope my work conveys this organic aggression however abstractly or even metaphorically it may be viewed. My thoughts on my own artwork are that by its very nature it becomes a deeply personal reflection of the artist, i.e. me that is to be read or shared by the viewer.

I am inspired to work in every way. I am passionate about it. There is never a lack of inspiration; the world is full of it. Of course I am interested in some things more than others, for instance botanical forms and their kinetic, quiet determination have always fascinated me. However, it is the act of work itself that is self-fulfilling. The gestural line is both independent of its creator and also completely belonging and I am satisfied that I do not have to seek a reason to work, rather that I am allowed to work.

Untitled, 2011, oil on wood, 80 x 60 inches.

Untitled, 2012, oil on canvas, 72 x 62 inches.

Untitled, 2013, oil on canvas, 60 x 51.5 inches.

Untitled, 2010, ink on sewn paper, 29 x 31 inches.

All works are copyright of the artist or artist's estate.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Maplewood, NJ 1997 MFA Grant Recipient Artist's Statement (2013) My work and the way I think about it has naturally evolved over the years. There are many more aspects of myself that I can now recognize and accept; primarily 'myself 'and my 'work' are one and the same.

# data[].attributes.body
Balance of bold shapes - positive images and cut-outs as negative shapes
Asymmetrically balance - no two sides the same
Bigger shapes are balanced with the use of a number of smaller shapes.

# data[].attributes.body
Born in New Orleans
Lives in New Jersey
Brought up by his grand parents

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Expressing an idea with subtlety is a difficult task, and that's putting it lightly. It's an extremely awarding task once accomplished, though. An artist with enough experience and talent can make expression through abstractions seem easy, almost as natural as talking is to us regular folk. Today's tale isn't only about art, however. It's a tale of a man with an interesting background and creativity on his mind.

His name is Raymond Saa. A collage artist of Cuban roots, who was born and raised by his mother and grandparents in the US. Being thrown into a completely different culture seems to have had an effect on Saa, as can be seen in some of his work. In his collages there is often an abundance of bright colors and floral patterns, a reminder of his heritage. This speaks to me of nostalgia for a home and the memories Raymond never had a chance to have as they were taken from him before he ever drew his first breath.

An even more interesting theme in his collage work is the balance he strikes between the tropical brightness and black and white tones which always seem to be in direct conflict in his work. A careful look at any of the finished images he masterfully created will make you awe at his brilliance. I know it had that effect on me. Every shape, every colour, every pattern has a function and a role to play. Take any of them out and the balance is disturbed.

In a 2013 statement he made, Raymond Saa said he recognises now how "he" and the "work" he makes are one and the same. There's no political, philosophical or even theological meaning to his art. He's just a man with a desire to express himself and everything within him. If you ask me, that makes his work even more profound.
raymondsaa.com

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Layering Shapes - Collage Artworks by American Artist Raymond Saa

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Expressing an idea with subtlety is a difficult task, and that's putting it lightly. It's an extremely awarding task once accomplished, though. An artist with enough experience and talent can make expression through abstractions seem easy, almost as natural as talking is to us regular folk. Today's tale isn't only about art, however.

# data[].attributes.body
Henri Matisse - strong hard-edged shapes used in his painting.

# data[].attributes.body
Blakc and white - struggles
Colourful - happy memories, tropical, Caribbean heritage

# data[].attributes.body
Represent his struggle as a first generation of immigrant in a new country, America

# data[].attributes.body
Only parts of plant life is seen in his artworks
No realistic plant life
Shape of plant life, representing his cultural background

# data[].attributes.body
What you don't?
What have you copied from him?
colours / layout / collages
What inspired you when yiu were creating your own Saa's artwork (artwork #4)?

# data[].attributes.body
Most of his artworks are untitiled

# data[].attributes.body
Collage of stacking patterned artworks on top of each other.

# data[].attributes.body
Ink, gouache, charcoal
acrylic when he is doing installation works - big pieces, that would cover the whole wall (I maybe doing one of these, when I am bored staying home during this lockdown)

The following artwork is in paint.

# data[].attributes.body
Pieces of drawings are sewn together using a sewing machine - way of collage / putting together images

# data[].attributes.body
All the shapes are linked and they depend on each other to make his artwork complete. - taking away one piece would create an imbalance in his work.

# data[].attributes.body
Bright, colourful floral patterns that symbolizes his cultural heritage

# data[].attributes.body
Overlapping of images shows front and back space
Light and dark shapes gives the illusions of form.

# data[].attributes.body
Monochromatic - shades of grays
Strong contrast of black and white
Limited colour palette in some
Colourful, tropical brightness in others (depending which artworks you choose)
In the artwork below - the black and white boarders on the right and left side of the artwork, framed the artwork, drawing attention to the tropical floral pattern.
There is also a contrast of colours used; a contrast of shapes
Geometrical, black and white lines that formed shapes and the middle portion, where he has coloured organic shapes of plant life.

# data[].attributes.body
Collage of images, overlapping each other gives illusion of form in space of front and back

# data[].attributes.body
Flat geometrical shapes
Repeated to form patterns

# data[].attributes.body
Lines used to create geometrical shapes
some shapes are lined up to create a frame for his artworks as in