I thought my objects made of unravelled canvas, or 'thread drawings' resembled precious artefacts, they had no apparent purpose, however they seemed important at the same time. Because of this it seemed a natural progression to move them from the wall where they had previously been displayed, to a cabinet-like display held in place with pins- reminiscent of taxidermy butterflies. The 50 drawings of the objects were pinned on the wall above with the order corresponding to the position of the objects in the cabinet.
My artists statement displayed on the wall along side my work read as follows...
My work forms an ongoing investigation into time and process, and within my practice, often the creation of the work is much more important than the final outcome. Based mainly in drawing and printmaking I am concerned with creating work that stands as a record of its own creation; a diary of itself. The notion of the artists’ hand and personal touch is very important to my work; fastidious, time consuming and repetitive ink and pencil drawings capture the physical process of mark-making. When drawing across a field of paper each unique, individual mark records the path behind it, acting as a marker for where I am and where I’ve been on the image.
My most recent project brings together these ideas of time, repetition and process to create something which is on the verge of a performance project. Large canvas drawings are unraveled from the bottom and then re-formed into ‘thread drawings’. Made from the canvas thread, these objects are then drawn on paper to complete the process. The thread objects, which form the focus point of the exhibition, act as traces of touch, recording my thought process as they are made by my hands. They are like important artifacts that have no purpose, yet need to be preserved. In their physical existence they record the moment in which they were created, like small pockets of time. The extensive process behind the final exhibit is in a constant state of development, and the cycle-like evolution implies something that has no beginning or end. In exhibiting the work, I have only highlighted the process at a certain stage of its development, making that particular passage of time visible to the viewer.
