ABOUT KWA
KWA (pronounced kwah / kwä) is an artist of the moving image, specializing in experimental motion pictures. The still frames extracted from his films are utilized to create artworks at cinematic scale.
His motion pictures have been selected for top tier film festival screenings, including The Chicago International Film Festival and Rhode Island International Film Festival.
KWA’s artwork and films have been featured in solo and group exhibitions, in Indianapolis, Indiana including: Speck Gallery at The Harrison Center for the Arts; Saks Gallery; The Indianapolis Art Center; High Frequency Gallery; Murphy Arts Center and Meyer-Najem Gallery.
His artwork is held in numerous corporate collections, including:
FDIC, Washington DC; finvi, Burlington, Massachusetts; Ivy Tech, Muncie, Indiana; Ontario Systems, Muncie, Indiana; Blast Media Indianapolis, Indiana; Statwax, Indianapolis, Indiana; Technology Marketing Corporation Westfield, Indiana; ProCourse Fiduciary Advisors, Carmel, Indiana; RJE Interiors, Indianapolis, Indiana; CleanSlate Technology Group, Indianapolis, Indiana; Sapphire Strategies, Indianapolis, Indiana; and MJ Insurance, Indianapolis, Indiana.
Statement
“Light is more exalted and of a nobler, more excellent essence than all material things.”
“On Light” Robert Grosseteste
My moving image works are meditative experiences composed of light. I find light’s speed and purity make it an ideal subject in terms of its visual impact; This combined with light being the foundation of all cinematic presentations make it an irresistible subject for me in my motion picture work.
I create prints and mixed media works based on the still frames taken from these motion pictures. Each still frame is a 1/24th of a second snap shot of my motion image work. Stopping these individual frames and examining their contents is revealing; They seem to hold unspeakable secrets that are only divulged by freezing each frame and thoroughly exploring its kinetics.
With my mixed media works, I overpaint the still frames. In this process, I act upon the new information revealed in the freeze frames and consciously change the image — much in the same way we all can change the way we view the world we live in and our future in it.