ARTIST STATEMENT
My work, as seen through a neurodiverse lens, is an honest expression of who I am. Easily overwhelmed by too much information, I create work that is pared down to it’s purest form. From my earlier work with convex bases that rock when nudged, to my current work focused on creating safe and sacred spaces for the individual that resonate with vibration when activated by sound, there’s no denying the underlying autism that inspired it.
We are living in a world characterized by over-stimulation—packed schedules, lumens that continue getting brighter, noise that is seemingly inescapable. The work I create is in direct contrast to that. At both smaller and larger scales my work is quiet. But at a larger scale it inspires the kind of quietude that soothes the individual, inviting the quality of silence that allows the inner voice to be more readily heard. The need for this is greater now more than ever.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Amanda Gentry (b.1973, Long Beach, California) is a Chicago-based artist. She approaches her process-driven work methodically and meticulously to achieve a meditative state that allows her to shed all but the moment at hand. Imbued with stillness and quietude, Gentry’s work elicits a similar pacifying and soothing response from the viewer. As a neuro-diverse artist, she pares down visual stimuli, intent on revealing what is essential so as to achieve breviloquence. Gentry is a DCASE (Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events) grant recipient and has twice been awarded an IACA (Illinois Arts Council Agency) grant. Her work is in private collections worldwide and exhibited in galleries, academic institutions, and museums nationwide.
© Amanda Gentry