Aggregate is a series of paintings by Flagstaff artist Caryn Bopp. The exhibition will be open in the Hidden Light Gallery at the Coconino Center for the Arts from October 20 through December 16, 2018.

Abstraction is a commonly used word in Art speak, and it actually has two different definitions. The first is to “be free from representational qualities in art.” The second is “the quality of dealing with ideas rather than events.” Aggregate is a series of paintings that simultaneously embody both definitions. The work literally depicts places from micro or macro viewpoints, making them appear (but not actually be) non-representational. It also is a composite of layers of ideas.

Every finished image is the culmination of several layers. Each layer deals with a specific concept based in the human condition, for example stress or sadness, with a specific intention of working through those ideas while making that layer. The final outcome is an amalgamation of sensations, of senses, and of reaching a balance and a clarity through the physical creation of the piece.

Aggregate means both the material that makes up the collective and the collective itself. It is both singular and plural. It signifies the human experience of one of us and of all of us.