Cadence Giersbach: Through the Summer Garden

Statement

Drawing inspiration from my garden in upstate New York, I create painted paper-pulp sculptures and fabric paintings. I am fascinated by the world encapsulated in the small piece of earth surrounding my home—its textures, shapes, and gestures—and the sensations and memories it evokes. As I dig the soil, lift stones, and plant seeds, I am a participant and an observer, keenly aware of the shifting ecology around me. I combine abstract, symbolic, and figurative references to living things and geological formations with ancient archetypes like spirals, snakes, and stars to create layers of association and explore our complex relationship with the natural world. For instance, a series of sewn kite-shaped paintings alludes to the sensation of being grounded on the earth while looking upward, connected to the sky. Paintings are not stretched or primed, so their surfaces undulate, while the sculptures’ textures are rough and jagged, reminiscent of a mountain range, or smooth like a boulder. Paint often drips and flows like streams in the landscape. Color is heightened or used symbolically, and shapes are exaggerated to portray the garden as a place of memory, sensation, and thought. My intention is to animate the work and coax it into expressing the story it contains. With each piece, I strive to elicit visceral emotions that connect us to the earth and sky and inspire curiosity, empathy, and care. The garden is a metaphor for life’s beauty, intensity, and fragility.