Title: The World Around Us // Artist: Kayla Starling
about the piece
| –Materials used: Scissors, glue, vintage magazines, vintage science textbook –Specific methods used: Cutting and gluing strips of paper, layering abstract blocks and words on a continuous background image –Meaning behind the work: This is a call to action — to myself and to those reading — to gnash your teeth, to fight harder to live. To fight harder to take care of others. We are all microcosms, connected, connecting, reconnecting. –Other info: “Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world’s grief … You are not obligated to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.” (“Pirkei Avot” 2:16) |
about the author // Kayla Starling
| Kayla Starling (they/them) is a queer mixed-media artist from Central Florida whose abstract collage works explore grief, hope and existential thought. Combining surrealism and maximalism through 2D analog collage, they urge the viewer to grapple with their own despair — and challenge them to find a way through it. When Kayla is not making collages, they are perfecting their stained glass technique, studying the Spanish language, and working toward food justice in their local community of Tallahassee, Florida. They believe we will see a free, liberated Palestine in our lifetime. |
Instagram: @decaf.collage
Author Photo Credit: Van Lane
wildscape. literary journal 