“The title of this exhibit, Tales of the Future, references a 1950s comic series whose now-dated depictions of the future appear humorous. This project, however, engages with the subject of mortality as an inevitable aspect of the future.

Reaching the age at which my sister passed away from cancer served as the impetus for this project, presenting both a personal and broader societal reflection on life’s fleeting nature. Following the tenets of palliative care, the project emphasizes that confronting mortality can, conversely, help us better appreciate the time we have.

Art can be an insightful means of processing difficult experiences and mapping human endeavors by organizing, editing, and presenting information. I draw inspiration from museum exhibits at sites with troubling historical legacies, where multimedia wall graphics, pictorial narratives, and printed takeaways are used to communicate digestible bits of information. Similarly, my works acknowledge the haunting presence of the past in the present and future.

My international research into theater and contemporary applications of print media offered lessons in the distillation of complex information and the use of allusion to allow space for poetic associations. Technically, my work employs additive and subtractive layering of translucent papers with reversible rice paste, alongside complex stenciling and subtle applications of pigment.

This series of paintings uses the pictorial narrative format of comics to present stories, such as my foundational experience of seeing the Minnesota Iceman lying in state at an Ohio mall. This sight introduced me to the architectural context of relics and the visual pyrotechnics historically used to depict the deceased. Ultimately, this reflection on micro and macro encounters with death seeks to provide insight into both personal and political existence.”

-Tyler Starr