Tianna Wierenga on Math and Creative Duty

Wierenga in Studio

KARDIA: Your deep understanding of both math and art gives you a unique perspective on creativity. How did these two very different ways of looking at the world shape your creative identity? 

TIANNA: I've have always had an equal love for art and mathematics. I have wanted to be an architect since I was 10 years old. I am fairly evenly right and left-brained, perhaps a touch more left-brained since, eventually, I enrolled in an engineering program for my undergraduate education. It seemed like a stable career that would pay well, and I could build things, so I thought that would make me happy. My school schedule kept me very busy and was packed with math, science and engineering courses. But two years in, I was really starting to feel the void of art in my life. At this point in my life, everything was logical, formulaic, predictable, and stable.

K: What eventually brought you back to art?

T: I was about halfway through my program in November 2007,  when my father passed away. Suddenly everything changed, and life felt very out of control.  I was struggling to cope. My grades were suffering. I was grieving the loss of my father while simultaneously grieving the loss of art in my life. The only way I can explain my next out of character decision, is a kind of divine intervention.  On a whim, I dropped my engineering major and changed to an art major with a focus on architecture. Normally, I would have seen this as a failure. I'm stubborn and don’t give up on things, but I felt compelled beyond reason to go forward with an art career. I knew it would be very difficult, but I'm not one to shy away from a challenge. That was the first very large shift in my creative momentum, but I was also adamant that I would not take the last two years of schooling for granted.

K: That must have taken a lot of courage. What did you learn about yourself in making that kind of decision?

T: It was quite obvious that I had really clung to perfection and rigidity by some of the earlier art that I made. The earlier years in my new found art major were – mostly lame!  I'm very obsessive compulsive and can spend a great amount of time on a very small detail. It's a double edged sword. Most of my earlier work was literal, and boring. The second huge shift in my creative momentum happened when I enrolled in an art class called "Found Objects". It sounded interesting to me as I had found myself gathering weird trash items and saving them for "artistic purposes". That class revolutionized the way I started to think about art. I had a good connection with the teacher, who is still a friend to this day. She found my creative weakness and forced me to make art out of control. The act of un-doing something that has already been done, was very uncomfortable to me, but I incorporated into my work in various ways. She made me paint over a piece of art that I was rather proud of. I was asked to dump water on it, blot it up with a towel, sand it down with an electric sander, and repeat. Although every part of that made me uncomfortable, I loved the results! It woke me up to the incalculable amount of different ways, in which, to create art. 

K: What areas of your life spark inspiration for you today?

T: Over the most recent years, my creative identity has grown/developed based on reactions to things that are happening in my personal life, things that are going on in the world, and important moments in the news and pop-culture, to name a few. I strive to stay true to myself while allowing myself to be inspired by everyday life. As of recently, most of my work is abstract. It almost always contains mathematics in some way, and can often appear minimal while being incredibly complex. There is always some kind of hidden message, story, or symbolism behind each piece. 

Self Portrait Series

Mixed Materials

K: As we talked earlier, several of your works, particularly from your ART=MATH series in 2018, translate very substantial mathematical elements and processes. Has this always been a way that you create your artwork? When did you start incorporating an emphasis on math in your work?  

T: Like many artists, I have gone through periods of trying to find my voice as an artist by experimenting with different mediums and processes. Trying to find a process that worked had always felt like a math problem that I couldn’t figure out. I'd tried different strategies and procedures, sometimes stumbling on a successful, completed work of art. One of my glaring issues was overworking a piece. Regardless of the medium, I often question: "Is it done?" I always feel like I could do a little more work - it could be a little better. One of my professors wisely advised me to give myself some kind of limitations so that I could more easily make the decision of the finality of a piece. Without question, those limitations quickly became numbers. Throughout my studies I have found myself drawn to certain "divine" numbers and numerology. Numbers make sense to me. I find comfort in pattern, repetition, and sequences. In my sketchbook, there are many drawings and references to the golden ratio, and the golden spiral. This concept ties to nature and organic growth in many different ways. 

K: How do you put these insights to work in an artistic way?

T: Artists, architects, and designers throughout history have used this concept in their creations. Scientists use it to understand growth systems of many different living organisms.  It's used in the design of man-made structures, and even financial markets. One of the most influential books I ever read, was in college when I was studying architectural history. It was called "Towards a New Architecture" by the Swiss-French architect, Le Corbusier. I loved his approach to design. He wrote about the home as though it were a machine to live in. He looked at the designs of ships, planes, and automobiles, for efficiency, space, and clean design. He had faith in nature as well as the mathematical order. His philosophy and approach to design placed a heavy emphasis in using the right proportions. In this case, the right proportion (or ratio) is the Fibonacci number, also known as the golden ratio and represented by the Greek letter Phi.

Glitches On My Radar

Mixed Materials

K: Yes, it definitely shows in your work.

T: I really clung to the idea that the mathematical relationship between different elements within a design is important, not only to its function but also its aesthetic value. So, in many of my own personal works, I allow the numbers found within the Fibonacci sequence, to dictate the outcome of complex or chaotic works (that I would otherwise toil over). 

K: You recently completed a cross-stitch based off of a still frame Childish Gambino music video, This is America. How do you relate the elements of this video and medium of a homemade cross-stitch? What are some questions you're hoping viewers would ask themselves when they view this work in particular? 

T: I have followed the career of Donald Glover, initially through his comedy writing, and acting, then on to his emerging music career as his alter ego, Childish Gambino. I admire his ability to seamlessly traverse through different artistic mediums. In 2018, when he released the music video "This is America," I felt a lot of different emotions after viewing it. It's meant to do just that. It's an uncomfortable mash-up of joyful music and dance to lure you in, mixed with violent crime and horrible atrocities occurring in the background to make you uncomfortable. It contains very difficult imagery which deters some viewers. I sought to appeal to the people that the video may not have reached, by using the medium of counted cross-stitch. I learned it when I was a kid from my mother, who learned it from her mother. It's a traditional hobby craft, typically associated with women, and often not taken too seriously in the world of high art. I chose this medium because of its softness, smaller size, and non-pretentiousness. I felt that the soft, tactile quality of the material, juxtaposed with the graphic nature of the image, echoed the tone of the music video. The image is a still shot, taken from the turning point of the video — the moment before the protagonist, Childish Gambino, shoots an unarmed, seated man in the back of the head. 

This is America

Thread on Fabric

K: Share a little more about the technique of creating this kind of work.

T: When you create something using  the medium of counted cross-stitch, you need a pixel map. It's helpful in keeping track of where you currently are, and what progress you've made so far (that in and of itself feels like a metaphor). Obviously, no map currently existed of this specific image, so I had to make my own. I hand-drew the map and translated over 21,000 pixels down to 16 unique colors. I chose a color pallet that consisted of only shades of blue and brown in order to reflect the message of the video, which is steeped in metaphor about race and gun violence, while also sharing the story of systematic oppression, racial injustice, and the disproportionate institutionalization of black and brown men in America.

K: The work itself must have taken an incredible amount of hand crafting.  

T: This project took me 9 months to finish. That is the longest stretch of time that I have ever spent on any one project. While I was working on it, I asked myself many times: Why am I doing this? Is it worth it? Ultimately I would love to create more of this type of work. Gritty images of powerful moments in history, as shown through the lens of pop-culture and the media, but in the style of your grandmothers cross-stitch. I hope, that as other people view this piece they ask themselves similar questions: Why would someone take so much time to make this piece of art? Does this artwork serve to draw people in, only to make them uncomfortable, by seeing a violent image? Does this art further sensationalize violence? The process of cross-stitch requires a lot of patience, persistence and meditation. I constantly asked myself those questions during the 200+ hours that I worked on it. 

K: And now, in this social moment, your work really speaks to what is going on.

T: Our culture consumes violence and art for entertainment in many forms. By merely re-producing this violent image for artistic value, have I glorified gun violence, or does the art penetrate deeper into the soul to evoke emotion, and inspire dialogue?  I think it's important to interrogate oneself as to what the ultimate purpose of a work of art is to be. It can be uncomfortable, but that is the whole point. The intention wasn't to create a piece of propaganda or fan art with an agenda, but I do hope that it incites critical dialogue about gun violence and race relations.  In the recent months, the video continues to transform, as a remix of "This Is America" has become the anthem for protesting police brutality in America. In the original video, Childish Gambino suggests that the cell phone is a tool. As civil unrest is happening across the nation, social media users have glommed on to a remix of the song, using it to highlight pictures and videos, taken on their cell phones, of their own personal experiences of being confronted by law enforcement.  This song continues to be relevant over the years, and I believe it shares a strong message that many people, undeniably, connect to. 

Self Portrait | Playground

Mixed Materials

K: What do you think your greatest service is to your community, public and self as an artist?  

T: Surprisingly, it has been working with youth. I never saw myself teaching kids or hosting workshops. I don't have an education background, but I fell into it after I began working in GRAM Studio in 2014. Since then I've had the opportunity to participate in drop-in art programs and teach a variety of workshops all over the city. Initially I was intimidated by the thought of talking to room full of kids, but after working with many kids and families, I became so inspired by what children are capable of. As we grow into our adult lives, things become more controlled and rational, whereas kids can create without restraint. They don't overthink things in the same way that adults do. It inspires me to try to "get back" some of that child-like mentality in creating. I also feel that it is important for children to have a voice and a diverse set of skills that can help them navigate life as they mature. Art is a huge part of that.  Art is not merely something to keep kids busy and entertained (although it can serve that purpose). Participating in art is a healthy outlet. It can help children learn sense of self, patience, process, and creative problem solving skills which can be applied to every single other area of their lives in the future. Having art in one's life can only be a good thing.  

K: What makes you feel alive and invigorated in your studio or outside in daily life? 

T: I'm inspired by everything. It's a blessing and a curse. I'm inspired by everyday life – the mundane. I'm inspired by my job at the airport, where I've worked  for 17 years.  A job in which, every night is well orchestrated, simultaneously occurring, chaos and order -- a theme  that is often reflected in my artwork. I'm also very motivated when I'm installing the artwork of other artists in the museum. How could I not be? I find my driving inspiration in discarded items and scraps (a.k.a. found objects) — things that would have been thrown in the trash after they've served their original purpose. I feel almost duty bound to reuse material, instead of buying new material, in an effort to minimize my environmental footprint as an artist.  

Mass Produced Feeling

Acrylic on canvas

K: How has the community in Grand Rapids shown up for you as a working artist? What are some ways that Grand Rapids can improve its support and visibility for the arts community?  

T: I feel lucky to be an artist in Grand Rapids. There are always opportunities to participate in a variety of events across the city. Our art community is a close knit group. Artists and creatives continue to show up for each other even as many businesses and organizations face severe budget cuts. When the pandemic hit in March, although it was necessary, I was devastated to see businesses closing their doors and every event being cancelled. With so many pressing matters going on in the world, it seemed as though art would be the last thing on anyone's mind. But as many people are facing tough times and feeling increased stress and anxiety, art is more important than ever right now. Grand Rapids has done a great job of making itself a destination filled with art and culture. I'd like to see more paying opportunities for artists to show their work locally and digitally. I would also love to see more artists being supported with art careers. I don't know very many people who are able to survive by only showing and selling work. Many artists have to have additional jobs or a careers outside of the arts. Many would love a career in the arts, but there are only a handful of full-time positions around town. 

Math Notes: Vector Analysis

Mixed Materials

 K: In what ways do you see the art community, either locally or digitally, growing and changing in the next few years? What are some ways your community can support you as an artist?  

T: Social media plays a crucial role in the arts and entertainments. Of course, there is nothing that compares to going to a concert with your friends to hear your favorite local band, or attending a gallery reception and seeing beautiful works of art in person, but in this digital world, the opportunities to reach a much wider audience are great. I've been delighted to see art institutions reprioritizing and making their exhibitions available online. Local musicians have been live-streaming their sets on social media. A staple of the Grand Rapids art scene, Festival of the Arts, after having to cancel the weekend long celebration for the first time in 51 years, in order to reduce the risk of the spread of COVID-19, organizers where able to quickly change course and partner with local networks and social media to offer the event online and streaming live on local TV. This event would normally see hundreds of thousands of people showing up downtown to enjoy our culturally rich local art scene. The cancellation of this event would have left a massive void in the arts community, but they were able to offer it digitally. ArtPrize has found itself with the same concerns and just announced the cancellation of ArtPrize 2020. Public safety, and risk reduction outweighs the economic gain of the 2 week-long event that brings a half of a million people to Grand Rapids from across the globe.  That had to have been the hardest decision to make, but I've been so impressed with everyone's resilience in the face of uncertainty and fear. I would love to see the arts continue to be offered digitally until we can feel safe to come together in public spaces again.  

Yellow Pillow Form

Mixed Materials