Devin Farrand

Horizon (Cornflower), 2023

Pulling from memory, Devin Farrand’s Horizon (Cornflower) (2023) sources it’s vivid shade from a wildflower that sprouted out of the blue one summer behind Farrand’s cabin in the Pioneer Mountains, and lasted into the fall season. Cornflowers, also known as bachelor’s buttons, are common in this area, but the intensity of their color often sparks introspection—not dissimilar to a Proustian bite of a madeleine. Other pops of purple and magenta continue to appear in Farrand’s field of vision, including an unidentified high-altitude plant in Idaho with a singular purple leaf, bougainvillea on walks with his dog around his studio in Pomona, CA; and a small purple cabbage chopped for a meal. Farrand works with a specialized anodizer to procure this incredibly bright shade of purple, which fools a viewer’s depth of field to force perceptive consideration.