Addison Karl's artistic pilgrimage has evolved over a decade of process related to prepress print & color theory. A cyclical evolution from blank slate to paper, canvas to installation & public space. With his work, he attempts to expand the viewer’s understanding of the context, structures & surfaces they inhabit & aiming towards a meticulous harmony & balance between that & the preexisting environment. His process explores two main domains combining humanitarian figurative & aesthetic subject matter. Projects in Israel, Russia, Southeast Asia, Mexico, Japan, the United States & Europe, have allowed him to explore the social construct of individual versus community. These ideals raise issues he feels are primordial to discuss in a public arena. Furthermore through his artistic practise he hopes to reintroduce into shared visual space a sense of ownership. The fracture of his paintings echo this as each tiny line communicates the innate relationship between individual & the larger composition of community.
Addison Karl | 2021
Itti’ kapochcha to’li’ known as “little brother of war” is the Chickasaw name for a game also referred to as ‘stickball.’ Toli has been enjoyed by many of the Woodland Nations of the Southeast of the US. Chickasaw, Choctaw, and Cherokee have deep roots in the game. The Chickasaw played as a substitute for war, to settle disagreements, as well as enjoy sports and athletics. After the games, different ceremonial traditions would take place. The players would paint their faces as they would for battle and fast for a more spiritual experience. Stomp Dancing from the evening until the next day dawn with singing was observed by Chickasaw and Choctaws. Women teams from the Eastern Band of Cherokee would play, with cleansing rituals in the cold rivers after they finished. Traditionally the game was played on a field similar to the size of a current football field with two poles on each end. The ball was made a small section of deerskin hide sewn around a round rock. The Toli sticks are approximately 2 feet in length with a round end made of bentwood to create the basket. The basket web was laced leather to be able and catch the ball of the hide. This artwork is a celebration of generation after generation playing this game. The artists dedicates this work to his grandfather whose Toli sticks featured prominently in the home he grew up in and for the woodland nations on whose land the artwork is being installed. https://vimeo.com/702957290