Cash and Carry with Lorette C. Luzajic- Q and A

Who are you and what are you all about?

I’m an artist and writer who has called Toronto home for around 25 years. Most of my creativity is expressed through writing, mixed media collage art, and photography. I’m obsessed by written words and by imagery, and use both in my artwork and my writing.

What is Cash and Carry all about?

The idea for Cash and Carry was all about creating an eclectic, riotous hodgepodge of small works that were cheep and cheerful. Using the language of commercial mass production marketing is my way of overstepping the taboos about showing and selling art. I wanted a show where anyone could afford a piece if they liked it, and take it with them right away, instead of waiting for the show to end. I will be showing a few large statement pieces, but I wanted lots to look at lots in the range of 25$ to 100$. This was also a creative challenge for me. What would come out of me if I acted as a one woman creative assembly line? How would they be different from my larger scale works? How would I display them? What would I do with the leftovers? Working on this project has been a chance to experiment with different ideas, and it meant finally setting up an Etsy shop.  

Why is collage so appealing to you?

The appeal is in the unexpected collisions. There’s a natural surrealism to collage that both artists and audiences seem to really enjoy. The juxtaposition of various familiar fragments brings new contexts and potentialities to light. I love the endless possibilities and the nonexistent boundaries. I love the irreverence, and the beauty. My works are like puzzles, in a way, combining overt, easily identifiable markers from art, literature, advertising, pop culture etc. with more personal or obscured symbolism. The works will continue to unravel or unfold with “finds” for viewers to match. But they can never fully be deciphered- most of the layers become hidden under paint or other images. The point is not to get to some kind of concrete meaning, but to propel the “what ifs” of the imagination.

What inspires your work? What are you influenced by?

I love to use text as texture and words as images, but I also pull themes and lines from literature and lyrics. I use music to drive the rhythm or patterns of a piece. I’m fascinated by everything from machines to found photography to religion, and of course, by the wide range of art history. It is the human imagination and ideas that interest me the most, and I mix them up. In this sense, my collage isn’t limited to cut out images- I have already added paint, chalk, ink, pastels, markers, anything I can make marks and textures with- but it is also about the collage of concepts and ideas. I’m most inspired by the human experience, which is manifest through our inventions and expressions of creativity. And the human experience has often been dark and dangerous, often been heroic and exalted, and most often of all, has been totally absurd. I’m inspired by all of these states.

Visit Lorette C. Luzajic at www.ideafountain.ca