The Astonishing Color of After

by Emily X.R. Pan

THE REMEMBERER SERIES Eight Surrealist Drawings by Leigh Chen Sanders Each 61 x 91 cm Charcoal and gouache #1. FAMILY TREE #2. PIANO #3. EMILY DICKINSON #4. INCENSE #5. RED BIRD #6. CRACKS IN THE SKY #7. SISTERS & GHOSTS #8. CICADAS Artist’s Statement: What is memory? It’s not something you can physically hold, or see, or smell, or taste. It’s just nerve impulses jumping between neurons. Sometimes it’s a matter of choice. Other times it’s self-preservation, or protection. This series is a memoir of sorts, born out of the excavation of my family history. Each piece represents a different memory found. The gradual introduction of color from one piece to the next is meant to illustrate a developing epiphany. All of them culminate in the final piece, Cicadas, which is a surrealistic mosaic piece done in full color: A mother, father, and daughter seesawing together on a park playground. Giant bird flying through a wide sky. Man on a plane. Girl in an apple tree. Memories that tell a story, if you look hard enough. Because the purpose of memory, I would argue, is to remind us how to live.

Artist statement exemplar