Hawai‘i Island-raised visual artist Margo Ray (margoray.com) creates intriguing works that combine collage, print media and installation.
Margo Ray, “Containment Landscape Series, Miloli’i” (Gouache, layered papers, hand-cut kozo prints and fibers on canvas0), 48 inches by 48 inches. PHOTO BY ANNA PACHECO
While her mixed media paintings—gouache on canvas layered with paper cuttings—may come in a bright and electric palette, the subject matter is often a little darker. Hawaiian flora and fauna are mixed with other iconic elements of the Hawaiian landscape, including old bridges and water catchment tanks. “The power and beauty of the land and ocean are ever present in Hawai‘i, as is the rich cultural history,” explains Ray. “We are not without our problems and complexities, though; the tension and coexistence between beauty, sadness, loss and joy are what I try to reflect in my artwork.” Her pieces reconstruct the landscape based on her spiritual interpretation of the place and touch on themes of beauty, decay, displacement and vulnerability. She also creates larger gallery installations where her collage works are featured on frosted mylar and replicas of old water tanks.
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