DRAWINGS & PAINTINGS
SHAPED PAINTINGS...
After having used Styrofoam to create some of her sculpture patterns, Wyrick decided to try shaping paintings using it as a backing. Canvas was adhered to the Styrofoam with gel medium and then gessoed in preparation for painting.
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In considering how little space is allotted to small artworks when shown in an art show, Wyrick claimed wall space for Little Painting Made Big by a linear extension on each side.
Using this Styrofoam method served also to lighten the weight of traditional paintings that use stretched canvas over wood frames.
Nightstream is considered by the artist to be one of her most successful shaped paintings—the cloth at the top of the ladder represents a piece torn from the sky. And at 6’3” h x 5’7”, it also demonstrates the easy portability of using a Styrofoam backing.
The three untitled heads are an expression of Wyrick’s grief at the death of a young friend from brain cancer just after having given birth to her first child. The works are backed by Fiberboard (or Masonite) and wood strips hold each away from the wall, allowing a shadow to be cast.
Although Wyrick saw many additional possibilities for making shaped paintings, especially to tackle how to soften the hard edge of the paintings, her imagination outran her time for creating!
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1990's
Little Painting Made Big, Cloud 1& 2, New Times Beginning,
New Times Beginning (portion), Firestream, Untitled (Mary with brain Tumor), Untitled (Anguish), Untitled (Hopeful Healing), Shape of the Forest