I like to think of life like a puzzle.  We are given all these disjointed bits yet they fit together in a way that is unique to our own personality and experience.  These collages by Cincinnati artist M Michael Smith remind me that though we may draw from similar backgrounds, our piles of pieces are only our own.

 

As we grow and mature, we add to our “piles” and though the pieces being added might be similar to others’, our pile is particular to us.  That piece that peeks out from the bottom of your pile, significant, but only barely, maybe at the top and center of my heap.  In his artist statement, M Michael Smith reveals that touch is central to his work.  I’m of course giving my own interpretation, seeing these collages as symbols not of physical touch but of how our lives are touched and molded by experience.

To see more of M Michael Smith‘s work, please visit his website.

All images are via the artist’s website.