Tricia Zimic

9 Fairview Terrace
Maplewood, NJ 07040

www.triciazimic.com
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Tricia Zimic - Artist Statement

My artwork is a response to human impact on the environment and its relationship to indigenous wild animals.

I use clay; fiberglass, found objects and oil paint to show the effects man -made habitats have on endangered species. These collaborations are sometimes ‘happy accidents’ and other times frictional or disquieting. I have seen animals trying to survive in the most unlikely places. Piping Plovers standing among flotsam and jetsam above an oil slick, Bobcat family nesting in old, discarded tires, a bat nesting within a car engine manifold.

I paint what I cannot create in clay. Coming from an illustration background, I use this opportunity to tell a story or set a mood more deeply in my paintings. Showing fight scenes among native and non-native birds, a rush of a pack of wolves running through city streets or a bobcat roaming through an abandon building- all have a impact that far outreaches the boundaries of sculpture.

After researching the endangered status of each animal, I sketch my thoughts out on paper. I sculpt with high-fire porcelain or stoneware from blocks of clay, adding and subtracting as I go. I use my hands, slab roller, extruder, carving tools-including wood fragments or shells to create shapes and textures. I like the permanence of clay as it allows me to feel that I am immortalizing each animal. To me, these pieces are as fragile as the true animals and remain a record of what we have with us today but may lose tomorrow.

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"My artwork is a response to human impact on the environment and its relationship to indigenous wild animals. I use clay; fiberglass, found objects and oil paint to show the effects man -made habitats have on endangered species. These collaborations are sometimes 'happy accidents' and other times frictional or disquieting. "