Divergence #2

The Kara Maria prints Divergence #1 and Divergence #2 were inspired in spirit and technique by camouflage patterns and Mexican papel picado. After the silhouettes of small birds and military aircraft were cut out of multi-colored tissue paper they were arranged overlapping each other to form a semi-transparent and slightly three-dimensional composition. Because the images created by the pieces of tissue paper are temporal — not fixed into place using glue or tape — the images seen in these prints only exist in the digital realm.

The project posed interesting technical problems for us, she wanted the tissue to appear as if it were backlit, so that the colors of the tissue transition into a disruptive pattern. We had her assemble a composition of the silhouettes within layers of transparent mylar. The scanner was then used like a lightbox to illuminate the tissue to create a translucence.