Elizabeth Bennett contemporary art
California, USA
Pieces
In this body of work, I play with the expectations we have of a jigsaw puzzle.
Putting a puzzle together mirrors what we strive for in our lives. Chaos becomes order. Pieces fit and make sense when put in place. They become integral as we begin to understand the big picture. Instead, I have taken individual pieces apart to find meaning in an alternate ordering.
Although I deeply appreciate the natural world, working with it as my subject overwhelms me since it is infinitely large, infinitely detailed, profoundly complex, and constantly changing. So, I’ve narrowed my focus to one small piece of this world, choosing the flora near me, especially California Wildflowers. Unlike birds and other fauna, I can get a good look at this stationary microcosm of life. And I am slowly, much like with a jigsaw puzzle, putting the pieces together of my environment.
This ongoing project was begun in 2021. The following images depict Wind Poppies, Indian Pink, Lupine, Cleveland Sage, Wild Rose, Columbine, Golden Lantern, Pink Mariposa Lily, Canyon Sunflower and Live Oak. 14" h x 11" w
Picking up the Pieces
I reconfigured each standard puzzle shape into twelve into new shapes that are laid out in grids. Like a personal and cultural Rorschach test, I labeled them with my associations.
15 panels
17”h x 11”w each
2019
Picking up the Pieces slideshow
please be patient as each page loads
Redacted II
19"h x 13" w
2020
Memory
19"h x 13"w
2020
Haploid
17"h x 11"w
2019
Missing Links
19"h x 13"w
2020
Disintegrate
17"h x 11"w
2019
Finished
18"h x 24"w
500 piece custom puzzle
2020