MARIAH READING

STATEMENT

I have been contemplating my relationship with art and the vast amount of waste creating can produce. Classically trained as a landscape painter, I pivoted to eco art when the parallel between painting landscapes and feeding landfills became overwhelmingly apparent. The landscapes that so richly inspired me were being hurt by the waste I created in order to depict them. To rectify this unwanted connection, I have developed a zero-waste practice that involves creating canvases from debris found during my travels through National Parks and protected landscape environments. The physical pieces of trash are painted only on one side and intentionally left untouched on the reverse so the original piece of debris remains evident. Once completed, I photograph the painted object aligned with the physical landscape to both obscure and highlight the discarded object. In the wake of the longest ever government shutdown, it is now more critical than ever to leave no trace. When our public lands are not vigilantly protected, the detrimental effects cannot be ignored. These wild spaces can easily be taken for granted, as even the most remote of such are becoming paved and overrun with idling personal vehicles. My practice revolves around ways I can lessen my footprint upon Earth and leave it better than I found it.