Clara Varas First Solo Show Opens At Edge Zones Magic City
January 8 – 29, 2011
Reception: Sat., Jan. 8,
Meet the Artist: 7:00 – 10:00 PM
Edge Zones Art Center
47 NE 25th St.
Miami, FL 33137
(East of North Miami Ave.)
www.edgezones.org
Artist Statement
My work explores the struggle and chaos of coastal cities and their disappearing natural habitats. Of particular interest to me are the lives that hang in the balance and those whose livelihood is directly related to nature. My recent compositions involve images which have been destroyed using scratches, marks, and globs of paint. Many times the marks resemble different manmade structures around the city such as fishing piers, buildings, or construction cranes, while the globs of paint become abstracted versions of nature like mangrove islands or meandering creeks and canals. In my work I like to create tension between past and present, natural and manmade, using paper boats, candy, sewing thread, fishing line, and other discarded objects to provide the viewer with clues as to a city’s inhabitants, and to reference memories of early childhood and current pop culture.
Much of my work is done on paper. Paper is a product of our consumer culture, it is a material easily discarded, and often overlooked, I like cutting it, tearing it, or stepping on it to create marks, scuffs, and to give this throw away material new meaning, giving mundane things new importance is something I enjoy.
Clara Varas
Born 1972, in Havana, Cuba, Clara Varas arrived in the United States at the age of six. Her work deals with issues of exile, immigration, separation and identity. Drawing upon fragmented memories of early childhood in Cuba, as well as her experiences living in an urban, coastal city like Miami, Clara has pieced together her history using unconventional materials like fishing lines, hooks, paper boats, yarn and plastic. Images of mangrove islands, piers and other structures invade her worlds creating tension between the natural and manmade, the past and present, forming links between her homeland and Miami. Clara has developed a unique visual vocabulary, taking us on a journey that is personal, playful, and spontaneous.
Clara earned her Bachelor of fine arts in 1995 from the School Of Visual Arts in New York City, where she had the honor of studying with renowned professor and contemporary artist Marilyn Minter. Her work is a part of private collections such as celebrated restaurateur and event designer Barton G. Clara has exhibited her work nationally in New York and Miami where she currently lives and works
Edge Zones
Edge Zones (EZ) is an artist based non-profit arts organization that was founded in 2004, dedicated to strengthening the contemporary art environment in South Florida. EZ creates programs that allow artists to explore new positions in the contemporary art world. EZ introduces innovative, risk-taking artistic exponents on a multicultural stage and fosters expansion in an international forum.
