JAIDRA DURANT
Medium: Clay & Wood , Fiber Arts , Painting , Visual Arts
Contact Information
www.niadstudio.comhttps://www.instagram.com/niadstudio/?hl=enArtist Statement
"I have taken a convoluted course of growth and artistic evolution to land where I am today and my art reflects this journey. Through my work as a transnational fusion dancer, I became interested in both silk painting and henna body art. The movement of dye on silk reflects the movement of the body through space, often bleeding into unexpected places and combining in interesting ways. The use of resist in the serti technique of silk painting mimics the application of henna to skin, creating continuity in two very different forms of artistic expression.
Further exploration has led me to utilize slip trailing on ceramic slab, translating the ephemeral nature of the henna style design into the temporary permanence of pottery. I discover joy in the intricately simple and the reflection of the natural in the created, so though I can spend days delving into an incredibly detailed silk or ceramic work, I also love to create small pieces, combining ceramic disks with bits of post-consumer scrap leather and copper to create jewelry or applying henna to deer bones, shells, or post consumer scrap wood to celebrate the natural, the ephemeral, and the delicate along with the earthy.
Recently, I have expanded my evolution as an artist and returned to my deepest roots at the same time by delving into acrylic painting. Some of my earliest memories include painting in the living room with my Nana as a small child, and though landscapes are my natural inclination, I am enjoying the pathway to finding my artistic voice in this new/old medium. My art is a dance, as my dance is also art, and it all works together to create a whole greater than the sum of its parts. "
