Roxanne (Roxy) Riess

Title: Re: Brainstormed

Image Description: A brainstorm with many words and statements on it, printed in thin permanent marker. The brain is made up of different pink lines. Printed and ripped up clip art stickers which are little brains and little stickers of thunder images are scattered throughout the image. Words include: Agreements + Practices Learning Advocacy Global Programs and Services, Data Tech Software, – ing Need, Scarce and Poor (left side)  Abundant, Rich Needs (right side), Understand, See, Hear, Barriers. Inside the brain words are:  nepanila, intersectionality, survival strategies and restorative practices.

Title: Re born: set again

Image Description: A printed clipart of a laptop computer. Instead of letters in their usual places, the keyboard reads (from back to front) ‘MEMORY’ ‘MEMORY’; ‘NOW’ ‘NOW’ ‘NOW’ ‘NOW’!’ ‘BABY’ ‘ROXY’ BABY’ !?; ‘AGAIN’ ‘AGAIL’ ‘AGAIN’; ‘LEARN’ ‘RESET REBOOT’ LEARN’. On the monitor a sketch of a baby’s face that was drawn on another piece of paper, ripped out and placed so it looks like it is coming out of the monitor. ABI written is on the paper and says ‘Baby Roxy’. The child has a stern look on its face.

Title: Re: Learn Purposed

Image Description: A clipart of a laptop. Instead of letters in their usual places, the keyboard reads (from back to front) ‘ROXY’ repeated until the front two lines of the keyboard which say ‘THANK YOU’. The space bar says “GRATEFUL’. Above the laptop are the words ‘SORRY TEACHER SORRY’. The top of the screen of the laptop says ‘ME’ repeatedly. The bottom of the screen says Before, Before, Before, BEFORE … Inside the laptop are two pictures of the artist. On the left, the artist, a young woman, has a shaved head after brain surgery, where part of her skull has been removed resulting in a dent on the left side of her head. On the right side is the artist with long hair, staring at the camera, presumably before her brain injury. Around the laptop are words, and many small old time watches, cut from clipart. Between the pictures the artist has written, ‘ABI Survivor’ with a drawn compass arrow going up and down. Below the pictures the artist has written, ‘Who am I’ Words include, “Death”, “Thank you” “Survive” “Please” “Life!” “Lessons” (written three times) and “Life!” (repeated six times.)

Title: Re: Spective

Image Description: A black and white drawing made up of swirly lines of found things: a bottle, a vase and a bronze thing that looks like a fan.

Title: Re: Move Precarious Home/House less

Artist Statement: The nature is outside and the construct inside is bare.

Image Description: A perspective drawing done with pencil crayon of a room. It’s night outside and there are trees and stars showing through the windows on both sides of the room. The windows are cut-outs from a home magazine that the artist pasted onto the image. Inside the room is a staircase which is going down, a couch, a throw rug and a door.

Title: Developing PreTime-PostSpace NOW

Artist Description: This is a a nondescript municipality, created from the artist’s imagination, and based on her mixed racial / ethnic background. At the banks you see Asian looking traditional buildings but what you don’t notice is the nature behind them.

“It’s about me as a place in time and space. … It could be Toronto but it’s North America. … The Asian structures could be temples or are these places where people interact that way or are they homes that’s why it’s nondescript. It’s all about living and me in time and space.”

Image Description:  A non-descript city space of a town. At the front are three red traditionally Asian looking buildings. Behind them are traditional western buildings which could be found in any city, such as Toronto.