Evolving from my interest in plaster as a material, becoming familiar with its limits and properties: my work has become an exploration in fragility and permanence. Although plaster is a strong, stable material it holds the incredible ability to define detail and pushing its limits creates a delicate and fragile material that can be incredibly hard to control. It is at this end of the spectrum I have focussed, manipulating its unpredictability and fragility to my own ends.
When fragility becomes the subject, an artist’s control is questioned. When a material becomes so fragile, where and how it will break is so uncertain the command of an artist becomes more about using this uncertainty to their advantage. The process is just as important as the final product. The documentation of the procedure whether with paper or video shows the fleeting white of plaster and the fragility of the charcoal laying on top. The form itself is ephemeral, always changing with any breeze, breath or knock, changing the lay of the charcoal but also the angle and arrangement of the plaster pieces. Taking inspiration from artists such as Eva Hesse, Cornelia Parker and Joanna Sperryn-Jones, I find their use of material both original and evocative with the impermanent nature of their work holding a special interest. Fragility questions the permanence of the piece of work, although it may exist for a time, it will eventually no longer be the piece it once was. |