Hear(t)stones, 2023

Aquatint, deep-bite, paper

The main focus in this artwork is mental health issues and my ways how to deal with it. Work consist from 3 parts: animation (50′), book and sound. The sound of the animation doors squeaking represents complaining, sorrow, grief etc. different hardships people must go trough their lives. The visual element – stones – represent the grey Latvian who is usually the one who complains as well as the symbol of rock it self representing the hardship and heaviness one must overcome while battling mental health issues. The animation is made frame by frame, each frame is printed on separate sheet of paper in aquatint, deep bite technique. All though the printing process took a lot of time (approx 350 frames were printed) I look at the printing as therapeutical process, repeating almost the same action for many times the process it self is clear and gives confidence to continue and each prints gives satisfaction, but The whole planning and printing process that happened during making this artwork could be compared to operation – in hopes it would help me get rid of my hear(t)stones. Ohh, I wish they could be operated out as easily as kidney-stones. During the printing process all the hardships (ink) from the artist gets transferred to copper plates (stones), then from plate into paper leaving the artist’s chests lighter, transferring the depression to paper.

Video