eliza stamps

2010-2011 has been filled with it all sorts of new projects, new ideas, and new collaborations.  The Wild Feasties invaded New York City during Armory Week, 2010 conducting an understated performance that had us acting as gallerists representing our own work.  Next, I joined the wonderful folks at Art Codex on a trip to Beijing, China, where I began my current endeavor, The Oracle Project.

The project explores fortune telling and toward that end, I have created “oracle decks,” in which every card has a specific symbolic meaning. Each deck is comprised of abstract and representational drawings, collage, and images from the newspaper.  I do not prescribe meaning to the cards beforehand; rather I allow the meaning to present itself as I lay cards down for my readings.

It has been a fascinating project for me to undertake. In addition to exploring the ideas of a universal consciousness that we can harness as individuals, it is an exploration of how the artist prescribes meaning, how the viewer accepts that meaning, and what happens when people suspend their better judgment and believe in a little bit of magic.

Since China, I have staged the project five more times across the US.  For each incarnation, I create a new deck of approximately 50 cards.  In and of itself, the creation of the decks has been a profound exercise in drawing that allows me to explore the outer reaches of my artistic lexicon.  My most recent deck, the Banteay Srei Oracle, was created during a two-month trip to Cambodia, and was heavily influenced by the vast history and beauty of the Kingdom of Wonder.

I have been awarded a springtime residency at the Philadelphia Art Hotel, where I am reflecting on The Oracle Project, devising new projects, and drawing my heart out.

Stay in touch!
Lots of love,
Eliza