Sandra Duran Wilson
DuranWilson describes herself as a collage painter. A regular contributor to the Artistas de Santa Fe gallery on the Old Santa Fe Trail, Santa Fe, New Mexico, she is a fourth generation artist with her roots in Mexico, Spain and Italy.
In 2008, she wrote of her work in these terms,"...I paint concepts. Science, math philosophy and spirituality are the concepts I explore. Art is my laboratory and paint, my tools". DuranWilson describes the importance of ideas and intuition to her work in these terms:
...the collision of dimensions is a place where science encounters art through texture, colour, composition and movement. I dream my work prior to creating it. The dream state is open to all possibilities, where sounds become colours and colours become frequencies weaving the tapestry of time.
It is not surprising that DuranWilson thinks of herself and her art in this way. She comes from a family of both artists and scientists. She has explored the intersection of art, science and spirituality all her life. She teaches workshops and exhibits in Santa Fe and internationally. She has degrees in both science and art from the University of New Mexico.
When I met DuranWilson in 2008 and saw her beautiful new studio space, I could sense her excitement about the works that she had completed for Under New Mexico Skies. Each of the 14 pieces was a jewel of made and manufactured papers processed through overdrawing, tearing, assemblage, printing and painting. I could see the strong influences of scientific thinking moderated by whimsical and subtle flights of imagination. Her skill was obvious and so was her "inner lens of focus" in the way she conveyed her perception of time and space; a relationship that she describes as "relative".
In a longer description of her work, DuranWilson has said she believes her dreaming of her work enables her work to be sensually textured abstract surfaces with portions of symbols and images emerging like treasures being unearthed from an archaeological dig.
Again, in her own words:
...creativity occurs on many levels, the dream state, and the intuitive and analytical outlook. My travels in Mexico and South America, and my studies with shamans and healers have also shaped my perception. I have always been fascinated with alchemy, the process of transforming something common into something precious. As a result, I make many of my own papers, paints, and encaustics using common elements, and employ transformative processes of printmaking and collage. Astrophysics, quarks, superstrings and phantom strands of DNA are inspiration for mixed Media pieces. Mathematical formulas give rise to complex, dynamic images through the dream state. I believe that art and science can inspire and influence each other. History is a part of memory: potential (is) a part of imagination, and where the two encounter and merge is the essence of power.20
Cheryl Hannah
Braidwood 2009
