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Janet Shapero

As an artist my work has ranged from realism to abstraction, from figurative marble carving to multi-media installation, from etching to animation. My focus is typically intense and in depth. I dive into a particular realm or a particular project for a period of time before emerging with a fresh body of work and a new outlook on the world. While my classical training may be discerned, my propensity to explore new territory is clearly evident. Often my work results from a cross-disciplinary approach to materials and processes and often it reflects my delight in investigation and innovation.

For many years, I have focused on the role of memory in the structuring of perception. Much of my work has involved the layering of images, language, and forms; the juxtaposition of organic to inorganic; and the use of multiple elements to create a cohesive whole. Drawing from personal experience, elements of the various environments in which I lived filter into my work; from the streets of Boston to mountain villages in Italy; from Western landscapes to Eastern seashores.

While I have employed a wide range of media, for the past decade wire and fiberglass mesh have become my preferred materials. I see screen as a metaphor for the filter of memory; the mesh through which we filtrate experience and the lens through which we view the world. Drawn to this non-traditional material by the nature of its structure as well as by its beauty, flexibility, and strength, I have worked with it extensively. I began by constructing sculptural forms with woven metal, combining different metals as well as painted screen and in many cases using these forms as key components in multi-media installations. I first focused on painted screen as an end in and of itself seven years ago. Since that time I have developed numerous techniques which I employ in layered combinations to create painted images on screen. I call these images “Rete-Chromes”.

Rete-chrome is my word for both the particular series of connected processes and the resulting artwork that have been my focus for the past seven years. Pronounced rêt-ê-krôm, it is derived from rete, Latin for net; and chrome, Greek for color. My method involves applying layers of pigment, both directly (as in painting) and indirectly (as in printmaking) to attain images on an open-weave backing.

Qualities of transparency, translucency and opacity are important aspects of the “Rete-Chromes”. Due to the open weave of the screen, light flows through the image where there is less paint and is blocked to varying degrees where the paint is thicker. This in turn produces complex cast shadows and allows for a rich interplay between image and environment.

In my most recent “Rete-Chromes” there is often a collage-like juxtaposition of colors and patterns. Sharp edges of containment serve as a counterpoint to expansive organic areas. This may be seen as an effort to achieve balance and a sense of order in what may otherwise be a chaotic environment. While the work has a dynamic vibrancy on one hand, it has a quiet meditative quality on the other. For me each one is an investigation; an inner journey; a means of creating wholeness.”