Teeth #1
Marybeth Chew
Watercolor on hot press paper
14 x 11 inches
2020
Statement from the artist:
"As a person with uneven teeth, and additionally being a person without
dental insurance, I empathize with these mouths, and with the anxieties of
these images.. pain, money stress, health stress, social issues, social
reactions, the broad fears represented in those strange symbolic
dreams...As I write this I can feel the imaginary tooth crumble on my tongue
in those dreams.
The implied communication and sound of these images also has humor,
like chattering teeth toys. En masse there's a frozen chaotic moment of
contradiction and fight for dominance. As a group, each demanding
attention, they create a rippling contronym of communication, snarling or
smiling."
