Laurel Johanneson debuts her new series called “the Oblivion Seekers”. Her work, which is usually inspired by nature; reflects the same themes but with a twist of concept. This series references the element of water, but this time exploring deeper into the expansiveness of time, space and perception. “The Oblivion Seekers” are digital images painted over photographs that are printed onto folded aluminum, then finished with automotive clear-coat finish. The images all focus on the element of water, but nod to life that surrounds the life source.

“I spend part of every year in Greece. When I’m at the seaside, I watch a lot of people stare out at the water, and the faint, or sometimes totally invisible, horizon. There is often something in their posture or expression that I read as longing, a kind of searching for something unreachable or unknowable. I think this observation, along with my interest in philosophies of temporality, combined with the constant presence of myth and legend in Greece . . . it all conflated to create The Oblivion Seekers narrative. The idea of drinking from that mythological body of water (The Lethe) in order to experience forgetfulness seemed to manifest itself in these present-day beings who longingly looked to the water.”