Soft Shell
2022
Works left - right
Wing
Mohair, fish glue, two flies
Bundle 3
Plaster, fish glue, rust, mixed fibres
A
Silk organza, glue
Looking Old
Wool sweater, plaster, india ink
Midnight Waves/Unreadable Writing
Graphite on paper mounted on handmade frame
Time Stamp
Embroidery floss, stained tank top, pins
Soft Shell is a series of explorations of liminality through sculpture, collage and drawing. Through use of glues and other adhering methods, I explore the joining, merging and interlocking of bodies, language and materials.
Glue does not inherently transform an individual item, it rather binds and adheres multiple pieces into a single gesture. Typically a “quick fix” to mend objects, I used glue in large quantities, to “fix”, pause, or lock an active gesture into place. I challenge the functionality and purpose of glue. Fused textile pieces may seem to be destroyed rather than mended as the glue is absorbed into the fibres. However, I embrace the murky joining of forms.
I use objects that can be held in my hands or arms, fit around my body and often even my own body part pressings. They are hand knitted and crocheted textiles as well as used garments that have a sense of comfort and domesticity. I want to be able to manage these items, to have an intimate relationship with them. They are extensions, shadows and placeholders of the body.
Pores are clogged as fibres are penetrated. Are the skins of these objects the edges of their being? Does the glue expand and engulf other items parasitically? There is a quietude to these still objects, their colours muted behind veils of ‘glue’. These are objects holding on to themselves, creating barriers, protecting oneself but at once separating their original form. This is a transformation that is not necessarily permanent, but also one that may outlive the object.
Photography by Laurence Poirier