Lauren Ariel: Transmedia Artist

Certified dumpster diver and pop-culture fanatic, I create out of what already exists in the world.

Transmedia is a technique I learned while in journalism school: it is the practice of telling one large, overarching story by telling many small, interconnected stories across multiple platforms, mediums, and disciplines. It is in this framework that I view my work.

My body of work tells the story of legacy in the human condition, of what we leave in the wake behind us as a byproduct of living. My mixed-media fine art comes from my love of the Romantic era and gothic naturalism, and the ways in which the Earth and Death become blended. My documentary photography comes from my love of print media and technicolor cinema films, and the way that bearing witness has a way of making moments extend beyond themselves. Both are motivated by a borderline obsessive need to chart the passage of time; to hold tightly the pieces of history that fall through the cracks.