My work is often very sparse in its content. The elements I use are minimised until only that which is ‘active’ remains. This reduction is essential as it allows for greater control over each of these elements and, crucially, allows me to eliminate any accident in favour of ‘conscious choice’. The precision is also functional; further emphasising that even details, of sometimes only one millimetre or less, are intentional and not the result of chance. Creating a situation where the viewer is fully aware that every nuance has been considered and is not the outcome of a serendipitous act.

I choose imagery associated with human activity, rather than that which pertains to the natural environment, as I wish to communicate in a very direct and, as I see it, very ‘human’ way. I am interested in the connections we make with others through the things we create – art, music, architecture..., and how these connections can be based on the tiniest of details. I find that the knowledge of these details being created specifically and ’intentionally’ by the artist, composer, architect…, rather than by random occurrences, produces an intensely intimate connection enhanced by the unambiguous nature of the expression.

THE INTERVIEW IN|DEEDS: Shawn Stipling
ArtatBerlin.com 2020