Misty Bennett
 
artist statement - “Charms” - recent watercolor work Younger. Thinner. More popular with friends. More successful with business. More attractive to lovers. Looking better than ever, conquering your first wrinkle, perfecting your body, starting over, fighting loss, ending suffering. The whispered and shouted promises of advertising know no bounds, and the human heart is all too capable of wanting to believe. We are eternal optimists when it comes to consumer highs, no matter how often we are disappointed. Who among us has not imagined a better life for ourselves adorned by beautiful objects guaranteed to soothe our soul or fill a void in the heart? You may despise your job (substitute boyfriend/girlfriend, body, government, etc.) but no one can stop you from loving Chanel perfume with wild and reckless abandon. This body of work explores the physical, visceral, intellectual, and emotional quagmire of consumerism. There lies within us a deep and powerful desire to be more than we are, and these paintings explore that murky field with joy and wonder, dread and terror. It is important to remember that to consume means ultimately to destroy the object of your desire. I have chosen to reference this by using the color palette of French Rococo painting, the icy blues and lurid pinks favored by the court of Marie Antoinette, as well as the contemporary cosmetics industry. These paintings also include symbols drawn from nature, from plants like poison ivy to molds and funguses that grow slowly and parasitically until they take over their host completely; what may start out as a simple yet beautiful adornment of nature can sometimes turn into a suffocating over saturation of limitless appetite. Misty Bennett