THINKING THROUGH DRAWING: PRACTICE INTO KNOWLEDGE

114 TEACHERs COLLEGE COLUmbIA UNIvERsITy

J. Fiber

The drawings of J. Fiber, made with

poured acrylic, colored pencil, graphite

and ink are small worlds, rife with drama

and conflict. Ruggedly masculine pas-

sages bump against petite strings of

flowers; turgid forms push into bosomy

mountains; and little boys with guns

wear bows in their hair. Images of sex

and violence are everywhere subverted

by feminine decoration. Working section

by section, the couple pass the drawings

back and forth, challenging each other at

each exchange, ultimately creating small

worlds, full of paradox. J. Fiber describes

the creative process as a curiously potent

struggle between two sides of the self,

where decision-making can be as fraught

as an old married couple’s argument over

whose turn it is to do the dishes.

James Esber, Figure on Ground, 20” x 26”, Acrylic on paper, 2011

J Fiber, Wretched Refuse, 30” x 22”, Acrylic, ink, colored pencil on Paper, 2007

From the exhibition: