Caitlin Hackett is a Southern California artist, with a passion for the natural world. This has inspired her since she first put pencil to paper as a child. She grew up on the northern coast of California, between the cold Pacific Ocean and the redwood forests. It was there that her love for nature and wilderness flourished.
As she has grown she has combined her love for animals with her interest in both wildlife biology and mythology to create artwork that speaks to the current biological mythos that constructs the barrier between what is considered Human, and what is considered Animal.
More info: caitlinhackett.carbonmade.com
Mirroring ancient myths of transformation in often grotesque ways, we find in contemporary times that animals are being transformed biologically due to interactions with human pollutants; there are frogs with triplicate legs and blind eyes, cows with shriveled sets of legs growing out of their backs, two-faced piglets being born on factory farms and radioactive fish rotting from the inside in poisoned seas, the list goes on.
"I am interested in the power of these mutations both for their mythological allusions as well as their dire environmental implications. I hope to remind those who view my artwork that we too are animals, embedded in this fragile world even as we poison it."
"My work alludes to the boundaries that separate humans from animals both physically and metaphysically, and the way in which these boundaries are warped by science, mythology, and religion alike. Like the gods of so many myths Humanity has warped the world into our own image, and it is this often frightening image I hope to reflect in my work. I am often inspired by current environmental issues; pollution, deforestation, species extinction, oil spills, poaching and overhunting, the use of animals as test subjects in medical and cosmetic labs, etc. I combine my passion for animal rights and nature with my love of mythology to create pieces that speak to the dark side of human nature, all with the hope that people will see them and recognize in themselves their capacity to help and harm the natural world. I am at times inspired by my dreams as well and will draw from memories of them. I have very unusual and twisting dreamscapes populated with unusual creatures, and most often I can remember my dreams with great clarity."
Caitlin says "I create what I am passionate about, and while I have had negative reactions to my work, usually from people who don’t understand the concept behind it and think that it’s cruel or gross, typically people enjoy it, but either way I will keep creating what I love. I like to surprise people too, the way I look does not tend to match people’s expectations after viewing my work, and that’s part of the fun for me at gallery openings."
Art is akin to philosophy and to science, it is a curious force in the human spirit, a drive to create, to take what we see and what we think, and what we dream and translate it onto the canvas, onto paper, or in a photo. It is the desire to capture a moment, to stretch a tenuous thought into eternity, or to question the bounds of reality. If there is no art if humankind does not have the desire or capacity to create art in this alternate world, then surely there is no philosophy either, no science, no literature, because all of these things are linked innately into creativity, and creativity is a driving force in our ability to grow not only as individuals but also as a species, it pushes us forward.
"I have always loved animals, biology, and mythology, so ever since I was a child I have been attracted to natural science and fairy tale illustrations alike. However, it was only after seeing Walton Ford’s show at the Brooklyn Museum while I was a student at Pratt Institute that I realized that as an artist I could create work pertaining to what I was passionate about, the tumultuous human-animal relationship."
"I actually did not intend to become a professional artist though, when I was young I always thought I would become a wildlife biologist. It was not until I attended a pre-college program at Cal Arts in high school that I started to seriously consider going into the arts."