Pop and other Palindromes is an intuitive exploration into a world of surreal and dreamlike scenarios and the people within them. The pieces have little or no sense of space, place and time. Instead, they exist somewhere that mood creates space; emotion is the place and time only matters in terms of timing. The characters and their adventures are inspired by every day feelings such as insecurity, happiness, fear, love and confusion as well as concepts of communication, limitations and the subconscious. The work examines the bliss and frustrations that often accompany understanding the complexity of these feelings.

Every day we observe people and are aware of the craft and care that is taken to put forth the image we see. When we listen to George Bush's speech we know a team of experts wrote it, and that even his suit was chosen to send the right message. We watch actors and musicians, so earnest and well poised, and we are conscious of the hours of coaching necessary to produce these performances. On talk shows we hear people "telling all" yet we know that the revelation of even their sorriest secrets is calculated for career advancement. We wonder about others’ private lives, and many of us believe that somewhere behind these masks lies the real person. We may also believe that for the sake of society and ourselves we should drop the roles we play and be who we truly are. Others of us may doubt that there is a factual self beneath the fake and that indeed image is everything. “Masks, Mummies and Modern Friends” are portraits in which the artist explores the concept of layers in one’s personality and how these masks hide or enhance an individual’s identity. The exploration of one’s personality is created through layers of paint and monotype on top of a sometimes already manipulated photograph. This forced application of prescribed identity makes the artist the determiner of what sort of mask each individual wears as well as make Lawless part of her subject. In doing so, she hopes to achieve a more rounded and developed character that may take on a new identity. The artist, however, maintains a certain objectivity and an element of humour and kitsch is seen as a valuable aspect. The work is a collection of photographed portraits of the artist’s friends and family. The series is made up of approximately 10 pieces. These images are about 20”x 25” printed on BFK paper and mounted on Gaterboard.

Partly inspired by campy science-fiction novels and American supermarket tabloids, these photographs create a suburban apocalypse governed by giant mosquitoes. But these images, although kitchy and humorous, were also inspired by the actual threat mosquitoes pose and how dangerous they can be. The females of most mosquito species suck blood from other animals, which has made them the most deadly disease vectors known to man, killing millions of people over thousands of years and continuing to kill millions per year by the spread of diseases such as Malaria, the West Nile Virus and Dengue Fever. The hope is that these photos impel the viewers to ask the question “what if?” and allow them to determine the level of triviality or significance of the threat. Dimensions: 32″ x 46″ Medium: Mixed Media on Canvas