Photo by Mariah Miranda
BIO
Dany Green (b. 1994, Ambler PA) is an abstract mixed-media artist living in Washington D.C. Her art practice aims to bridge the gap between the literal and the imagined.
Green grew up in the outskirts of Philadelphia, living in the small town of Ambler, PA. In high school, she was introduced to artist Isaiah Zagar’s Magic Gardens while exploring Philly. The Magic Gardens are a courtyard and building covered in mirror, ceramic, and found objects. After visiting, Dany decided to attempt her own mosaic. In 2012, Green completed her first mosaic as a capstone project. The piece was made entirely with broken bottles and mirror on a plywood base. Green went on to develop her own process that pushes the boundaries of traditional mosaics.
Her unique style stems from “coming in through the backdoor to mosaics”; referencing how she was initially introduced to the medium through an artist who utilized non-traditional materials in an unconventional way. As her practice evolved, she learned more about the ancient art form and began to weave it into her avant-garde approach.
Dany Green has exhibited at Strathmore’s Invitational Gallery, Latela Curatorial and Art of Noize Gallery. Most recently, she wrapped up a group show at DC Arts Center, “On What I Can Control”. She is currently working on developing a new body of work exploring humankind’s ancient and mystic relationship with the cosmos. She is interested in how myths and folktales have been used as means to understand the unknown.
ARTIST STATEMENT
I break things and I put them back together again.
I am an abstract mixed-media artist primarily working with broken stained glass and mirror. My unique approach pushes past the boundaries of traditional mosaics. I aim to establish a gap between the literal and the imagined. It is within this gap that my work can be interpreted with dream-like reasoning.
Many of my pieces incorporate found objects — rusted keys, discarded lighters, shattered headlights — and smashed glass bottles. The bottles harken back to the beginning of my art practice when I only used what I could get my hands on as a teenager. As my process evolved, I began to incorporate more traditional tesserae mainly stained glass.
Glass is fickle by nature. It’s appearance shifting depending how the light hits. By using stained glass, often iridescent or mirrored, my work remains elusive as the impression changes with a simple shift in viewpoint.
I want to hand over the tools for the creation of a narrative to the viewer — allowing them to return to a child-like imaginative state where no ideas are incorrect.
All my work has hundreds, thousands for the larger works, of meticulously placed shards of glass. Each physical glass piece marks a moment in time. Hundreds of unique tesserae, hundreds of moments; unifying to express the universal energy that connects us all.