Besides making work for the programmed Handshake shows, we’re each tasked with developing our independent practice. 2016 was a busy year.
Here’s a digest of the side projects that occupied me between March and December 2016.
March – With Occupation: Artist – Golden Section
This lighthearted, ephemeral group project was pivotal for me. The combination of:
- working in close proximity with the gold
- working with the team
- the warm public response
lifted me at a difficult time. Yinka Shonibari said You can fix the world through your art – or you can somehow make it more bearable. I saw that I can choose to work in ways that make my own process bearable for me, harnessing subject matter and ways of working that bring me strength and confidence.
This realization triggered a new body of work; an experimental series which explores the relationship between our physical self and mental state and the feedback loop that exists between the two. Though it doesn’t feature physical jewellery forms, the body is central in this series.
June – at The See Here – Lighten Up
July – for Playthings – Walking on Sunshine
November – at Pataka Art gallery and Museum – Labour of Love
An instant private collection for Viv Atkinson, gifted with love and thanks by the Whitireia Visual Arts community. Click here to visit the project website.
HANDSHAKE 3 