Beata Wehr – Artist Statement

Most of my work relates to my experience as a European living in the U.S. I came here 23 years ago from Warsaw. Since my connection to Poland is very strong, culturally and emotionally I am in between the two worlds. This is probably quite a common experience of many immigrants, so I think that although I am talking about myself, it is more universal. In my work I address the problems with complete understanding on both verbal and non-verbal levels, adaptation, nostalgia, isolation, dislocation and identity. I moved many times, I had 12 homes -- so I started to define again the idea and meaning of home. I had to tame the new space in order to make Tucson, which is so different than Warsaw, my new home.

I found artists’ books to be especially useful in talking about the issues of identity, immigration, and dislocation. I like their intimate format, and the fact that many media could be combined on the pages, creating layers of images. My books are usually bilingual, or semi-bilingual and I often mix images with writing, pieces of newspapers, found objects and other elements reflecting the everyday life in Tucson as well as my links to Poland. I try to combine two different experiences from two different worlds in this “in between” situation. I started to think it is possible, although my native life, language, landscape, culture are so different then my life here in Tucson.

The book “List z pustyni” (“Letter from a desert”) entitled in Polish and containing objects and smells from Arizona connects the two worlds, which by now are both mine.

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