by Dan Aldo
Chris Bleicher’s scenographic body of neon works recently exhibited at Artifact can be defined as a certain theatrical set pieces in which exotic life and its cycles play out a timeless drama in an ever-present emblematized space. Artist’s 3D images of dragons and mermaids are persuasive and authentic because they are complex and rich. The offer a multi-layered visual experiences that reveals themselves slowly over time. It is for this reason that I propose that if we were to look at the deep structure of her work we will realize that these images contain a purposeful sense of narration. This is felt through the artist’s visual recapitulation or enumeration of experiences.
Fundamentally, the deliberative artificializing motifs in Chris Bleicher’s images which strengthen the syncretistic aspect of her work recall that all of our concepts regarding “nature” springs out of our cultural interpretation. That interpretation, that cultural conditioning, forces us to consider our collective desires as human beings to perpetually conjure up an imaginary natural landscape in the visual arts. Bleicher’s work, which rests on her visually mimetic imagistic recapitulation of the sensual aspect of the primordial is harmoniously balanced by a sense of restraint. The overall syncretistic vitality of these works allows us to appreciate theintense plastic life of her sculptural pieces underscored by the use of neon light that recalls the efflorescence of nature.