PERY BURGE AND HER WONDROUS “INKSPLOSIONS”
When I first visited Pery’s website, I was struck by this quote: “Nature is the best artist.” After all my years of exploring art, and specifically the visual science of effects animation, I can think of no better phrase to encapsulate my findings. In fact, it is a mantra I tell my students: always study nature, because it has inherently perfect design. Pery’s aesthetic is one of pattern and movement, how random designs of a particular phenomena behave in different environments; in short, her work is about mutability, specifically as it relates to force, time, temperature, light, and material substance. Beyond all that, her organic, saturated landscapes also capture the imagination, much like Kandinsky’s pre-geometric improvisations. Here is how she describes her process:
The process - it utilises a type of fluid flow driven by surface tension. The ink I use does two things - it generates the flow and also acts as a visualizer. Different inks and paint have different surface tensions: I combine them on the surface of the water in a bowl, then wait for them to do an ‘inksplosion’ outwards and downwards across and through the water (and some spreads move so fast they jump right out of the water). I never know exactly when the spreads are going to pop, so I just have to guess which moment to start taking pictures! I can control certain aspects of the spreads - particularly types and combinations of ink. I use a Canon EOS 350D with a macro lens and as much light as I can find. I take my equipment all round the house (I work at home) looking for patches of sunlight to illuminate the water.
