Artist Talk with Claire Apana

The fluctuation between extremes, cultures, and identities is what drives Claire June Apana to develop works that highlight nuances within humanity. Los Angeles is the wealth of creativity and culture that inspired Apana’s upbringing. As a child, she was entranced with origami as it was a means of exploring her diverse heritage through art. This fascinating medium allowed her the ability to create delicate sculptures with conventional materials. Her passion for paper as a material followed Apana into her photographic career as a fine art photographer and darkroom printer; later providing the source of inspiration for her massive sculptural installations.

Claire June Apana’s works focus on Impossible Realities; paradoxical ways of life that are absolute. Understanding contradiction facilitates solace within the collective uncertainty of existence. Apana’s contemporary sculptures utilize traditional patterns on an Americanized scale. These works recontextualize the medium through the exposition of transitional lifecycles. From performance, to experiential…