Marco Carofalo ART

As I come to the final stages of my practice, I'm contemplating more and more what my next steps will be. There has been a vast amount of experimentation in my work, amassing much material. This is a position I love to be in as allows me to reflect, evaluate and observe what has taken place in my making process. Using the photocopier has enriched my output and provides the means in which I can replicate my images quickly in a physical form. When I say physical form, I mean I have a tangible piece of paper in my hand. I feel this way of working opens up a dialogue concerning the edition in printmaking and the process of replication.
        Photocopying my paintings has been an interesting development in my output and love what happens when the textures, colours and material are regulated and flattened to an extent to create something totally different, yet relatable to that previous step in the process. Although I position myself as a printmaker, the augmentation of painting in my work is an interesting component. The painting acts as a step in the making process(a layer in the print) I feel retaining a relationship to the medium of printmaking allows me to have this further conversation in terms of what a print can be. I feel this establishes my position in the practice of printmaking and will be something I continue to explore in my practice going forward.

As the making process continues I explore further elements and continue to push my work through more processes, in a way the work never ends. Taking the time to observe has been vitally important as other influences emerge and inform the next stage in the life of the print but also how I may display the work. This will be another facet I continue to drive in my endeavours going forward. The relation to space and how the work is positioned is so important.

I like to display my work in relation to the space it inhabits at the time, this provides the work a temporal quality and note how other elements of the space come into play. The print is leaning against the wall and responding to the fixture and fittings. The radiator pipes that travel behind the canvas become part of the work, the plug socket picks up on the geometric qualities of the hybrid piece. The print is also framed by all these elements and comes alive. Therefore, looking to work in different spaces and test the work in different orientations is going to become an important working component to my practice.
        I'm trying to give my work further body and present how the various digital and mechanical devices process my corporeal marks. This can be seen in the above MDF plates I had routed. This gives the work a robust physical form but is also responding to how digital technologies make the work. For me it is simplifying the relation between the physical, digital and mechanical and how these all relate and work in tandem. I'm excited to what the future brings and can really see how my work is developing and taking shape.