January Art ShowDon Dahlke

I am a multifaceted artist working with a variety of approaches and an assortment of media.

I am interested in exploring and inventing visuals that create and challenge my audience and myself by questioning the aesthetics of what is acceptable and what is not. For many, the approval of a work of art is if it is relatable or enjoyable to view. My goal in creating art is not about approval, but about developing a process that asks questions of what art can be, how it can change, how we look at art and not limited to repeating a concept. A body of work is developed in order to understand how it affects my personal feelings or the gratification of making the art. The concept can continue on for several months or even years, then stopped to pursue another concept triggered from an urge to reinvent myself. In some cases, I find myself revisiting a past approach which leads to a new understanding of what the work can convey. At the time of initiating the concept, it can be ambiguous and is based on an emotional gratitude to what is happening in the process of making the art. It has nothing to do with the message it might create because it is subliminal.

I am an artist uninspired by trends and driven by my own devices.