My pieces draw inspiration from molluscs, the soft-bodied sea creatures that have a hard-shelled casing for protection. In this pandemic, we humans have fled the risk of infection and sought physical protection by retreating, like molluscs, into our homes. Our homes have become sanctuaries of safety relative to the outside world.
My forms are partially or fully closed, some allow for transaction, others are in isolation, each physically distant. Within each carapace there is still life; a diversity of social and physical relationships - mostly irregular, some erratic, others fragmentary. The ragged edges suggest these variations.
The pieces are made of fine porcelain, itself a vulnerable material prone to breakage, as are our lives of recent times.
porcelain on timber base
12 x 70 x 55 cm
Finalist
Jan Downes, in conversation with Professor Ian Howard, discusses her work STILL LIFE. Recorded on 6 November 2021 at the 20th Anniversary Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize exhibition, Woollahra Gallery at Redleaf.
Judges of the 20th Anniversary Woollahra Small Sculpture Prize: Dr Lara Strongman (Director Curatorial and Digital, Museum of Contemporary Art Australia), Joanna Capon OAM (Art Historian, Curator and Industrial Archaeologist) and Jenny Kee AO (Artist and Fashion Designer).
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