Abstract Artist: Remmi Franklin
Medium: Mixed Media
Website:  www.web.me.com/remmart

I enjoy doing my work and it evolves as I need to change. I have no plan and enjoy just having fun with what comes to me as I mull over ideas.

Remmi was at Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) when she began experimenting with creating images that played one color against another. She is fascinated by the way the human eye is trained by nature to see in a certain manner; to perceive familiar shapes and colors and almost programmed to accept a certain view. Using contrasting plays of color and shape, she has sought to challenge those expectations and to induce the viewers to stretch their perceptions. In her need to challenge her own capacities, there was a period of creating trompe l’oeil pieces while at the same time designing sets for the theater. She enjoyed working with the parallel styles of trompe l’oeil, which uses extremely realistic imagery to create three-dimensional, optical illusions, and set design, where she needed to create new realities. She also liked the contrast between her small trompe l’oeil pieces and her large-scale scenic design pieces. When she made the move to her own studio almost 10 years ago, she had the space and freedom to go back to her roots—painting on canvas. Before long, she was inspired to start experimenting with using a wooden board as her canvas. It felt like she was home. The subject once again evolves from her materials depending on the type of wood, the size of the board, condition of the surface, the feel of the material. She currently finds herself painting large abstract landscapes or abstracts of color combinations. With the addition of collage techniques and the layering that is inherent in that art form, she can again create juxtapositions and perceptual “challenges.”