Mat WHWD V.1

Untitled (Hand)

What? Untitled (Hand) is a sculptural interpretation of a human hand. Displayed upon a shelf it constitutes an eye of a larger pictorial face depicted on a wall. Coloured flesh tone pink with fluorescent green nail varnish. Its surface has a satin finish.

How? Untitled (Hand) is sculpted from polymer clay baked in an oven before being carved and finished by hand. Its coloured with pastel spray paint and adorned with domestic cosmetics. The shelf is constructed from plywood and plastic painted matt black, matching its circular backdrop.

Why? Through an ongoing enquiry into everyday objects of consumption I identified the hand of a back scratcher as a starting point, reappropriating an object produced with the sole purpose of satisfying an itch you cannot physically reach. It’s rendering as a generic human hand, to the approximate scale of my own, depicts the user and product within the same object.

How could this develop? I would look to produce it as a multiple remerging intermittently within future or parallel works. One such idea is a series of figurative clothing and curtain rails where the hands become physical markers beginning and closing the loop of metal section the rail is constructed from.

Lassi come home

What? Lassi come home is a sculptural diptych. A facsimile of 2 metre high cup-like structures stands adjacent, in proximity to or completely apart from one another. One stands upright whilst the other upside down. Large enough to enter and stand within they both feature the same monochromatic graphic on their exterior coverings - unhinged free-association faces flowing in and out of jumbled imagery synonymous with a day at the beach.

How? Fabricated to be modular and collapsible the structures are constructed from welded steel circular ring sections and upright poles all painted white. This framework, similar to that of a tent or marquee, is covered with a stretched printed vinyl façade attached via a series of eyelets and ties. A zipped slitted entrance, the full height of the cup, is present on one side.

Why? Lassi Come Home is an extension of the conversation between the consumer and the consumed. The focus falls upon the process of embodiment undergone in relation to the objects you choose to use and surround yourself with - twinned pop-up environs that acknowledge the object of consumption through their form, whilst promising parallel states of shelter and erasure.

How could this develop? Exploring the expectations of the space the cup creates. Developing them as fluid spaces that can adjust to their immediate circumstances and locales. The free-association faces could become digital characters within these spaces, obtaining multiple personalities by assimilating their surroundings. Elevating them to the role of the host, they actively engage the participant as both antagonist and protagonist simultaneously.