Caleb Flood

Artist statement

As of today, December 2^nd, 2008, I feel the following ways about my art:

Veins and arteries pump both love and hate through my body. I don’t know which one pumps which. My work exists as an act of violence and an act of healing. I use spiritual healing methods such as prayer, meditation, sound, herbal medicine, and acupuncture. Through some of these methods, such as acupuncture, healing is achieved through an initial act of violence. It is this relationship that I am interested in. Beat me up if you like me.

I have suffered from myself attempting to make work and exist in a microcosm of linear and objective thought. I want to heal.

Art does not have to be a lifestyle or a social role for me. Art is becoming what I do that I am proud of. In the tradition of excellence, there is no excellence for me.

From an academic or descriptive perspective, my recent work is time based, involves people, and is abiding of what happens within its framework. It is not my intention to create scenarios where things can go horribly wrong. I do not intend for my work to fail or succeed, but to simply be. I want for people to feel as is they know my work, and for them to feel connected to the work and to each other. The concept of “knowing” is not subject to the realm of linguistic interpretation.

I feel as if I am on the mend.

Go about your time.