ARTIST STATEMENT JUNE 2020:
My practice explores medium-specificity, concepts of existential rationale and cognitive distortions. Recently, it has dealt with themes of self-loathing and narcissism, routine and ritual, and of failure and success. The process involves painting abstract and figurative content upon both conventional and non-conventional surfaces. The resulting image is then redacted, with particular elements and objects often being blotted out or left vacant, emphasizing mark-making as an act of cognizance.
Emily Benz, born in 1985, received her MFA in Studio Art at the San Francisco Art Institute, and her BFA in Painting at Southern Oregon University. She currently lives and works in San Francisco, California.