Mapping Loss: Jennifer Palmer

 Mapping Loss

            Jennifer Palmer’s exhibition at the Barr Gallery in Indiana University Southeast, titled Mapping Loss, is a series of mixed media paintings and drawings. When entering into this exhibition, the viewer finds a room full of abstract multimedia paintings arranged strategically across each wall. There is a common color palette organized throughout, creating a nice cohesiveness. These colors include various tints of blue, green, yellow, and red. These pieces are nonobjective, simply paint splatters creating a sense of motion. The color that is present is very diluted, appearing almost like water color paint. There are also drips resulting from heavy applications. Palmer has thought about this very diligently and has paid attention to the small details that may not even be recognized by the viewer. It is these details that I appreciate most about this exhibition.

Mapping Above 49, Jennifer Palmer, mixed media on polyethylene, 2017

One of the most significant groupings are the two groups of circle canvases. They are set up on opposite walls, parallel from one another. They have black backgrounds with different colors strewn across them. When observed closer it is evident that there are many white dots throughout as well. This gives it almost a galaxy look. There are four in each group, eight total. The most interesting of these to me is Mapping Above 49 because of the arrangement of the colored shapes on the black background. Especially the blues and the pinks. Also the movement of the colors strewn onto the black background plays into the flow of the piece. From the way that these different elements mingle together it appears as if it is a comet flying through space.

Mapping Above14, Jennifer Palmer, mixed media on polyethylene, 2017

Another piece from the Mapping Above series that interests me is Mapping Above 14. This one stands out to me because it reminds me of a globe for some reason. Though they are all in the shape of a circle, none of them actually remind me of a planet, but Mapping Above 14 does. I think the main reason for this is because it has colored shapes along the border that run off the canvas making it appear as if this canvas could be a sphere, and the shapes don’t just end at the edge but wrap around this ball.

These circles are all similarly titled: beginning with Mapping Above and ending with a number. Before reading the artist statement the choice of titles could seem insignificant, as if that was just the number in the series and the artist only chose her favorite ones to display. However after reading the artist statement, the viewer is given a key that unlocks a new understanding. Palmer has lost her mother to cancer and this exhibition is a response of her grief. As for the circle pieces, each title represents a date. On the far wall, the one parallel to the entrance, signify the date of her mother’s birth date: Mapping Above 8, 4, 19, and 49. Put together that is August 4, 1949. Then across the gallery marks the date of her death: Mapping Above 9, 26, 20, and 14. This exhibition has a lot of hidden meanings that the viewer might just overlook without reading or talking to the artist herself, but when they are recognized they open a new appreciation.  

One of the most intriguing factors of this body of Palmer’s work is the many dots hidden and flowing throughout each piece. There are hundreds on each piece following the flow of the paint splatters and smears. They are almost nonexistent as they blend in with the chaos of the colors and shapes, yet that is what makes them so captivating. After reading the artist statement and especially hearing from the artist herself, the dots take on a whole new meaning. Every time that Palmer thought about her mother after her passing, she recorded it with a dot on each piece. Once that knowledge is brought to the attention of the viewer, the dots become overwhelming. Thinking that there are around twenty large scale pieces, ranging from two foot diameter circle canvases to 24x36 inches sheets of paper, and countless small scale pieces, which are around the size of 4x3 inches. Each having hundreds of dots. This shows how big of an impact Palmer’s mother has had on her life that she thinks about her mother so frequently.

In conclusion, all the pieces in this installation represent the way that Palmer is finding her way through her grief, explaining the title Mapping Loss. I believe this exhibition is successful because it is pleasing to look at but also has a deep meaning. Though it is abstract, it has a message that is being communicated to the viewer. However, by reading the artist statement alone the viewer does not get informed about a lot of the hidden messages such as what the dots represent or what the numbers mean. I feel that if the artist wanted this to be an important factor in the viewing of her work she would have included it. The artist statement does tell the viewer about her loss as well as hints at the zen found in chaos. This alone is enough for the viewer to put the pieces together to understand that this is the artist’s response of her struggle through grief. The structured dots are strategically placed within a chaotic swirl of colors, representing the peace she finds even through her pain.