Resilience behind the Mask

I wrote this piece as the introduction to my virtual show in 2020 and wanted to share it with you.

Resilience behind the mask 

The two definitions of Mask in the English dictionary are, ‘a covering worn to amuse or to frighten’ and ‘a covering worn to protect’.

The definition of ‘Resilience’ is the ability to recover quickly from difficulties.

The work I am showing in this exhibition is the precursor to the work I made for my show last year at O N C A gallery in Brighton, 'Movement Makes Marks' co-curated with Dr Julia Winckler.

Venturing out after the first lockdown 2020

As we start to venture out after a period of isolation, many of you, like myself, will have reflected on our own mortality and loss. It has been a very challenging and sad time.  The question is how we pick ourselves up? 

Resilience Forum Brighton

I was invited to be a part of a Resilience Forum when I was studying on a Masters degree in Inclusive Arts Practice at the University of Brighton.  I had been exploring resilience for a participatory practice module I undertook with tutor Dr Julia Winckler and for which I focused on and explored themes around aging and bereavement.  

The title 'Resilience behind the mask'  felt poignant, connecting to this past work, the work I am exhibiting and also to the wider world as we will all start to venture out again.

Inclusive artist

As an inclusive artist I have worked with many community groups over the years, including some during lockdown using social media and various meeting platforms.  Participants expressed fear around health, including mental health and depression.  Some people have managed to stay upbeat and positive too.  

Hidden disability

I have myself suffered in the past with health issues, debilitating migraines from an illness called hypothyroidism, (a hidden disability) and feeling depressed. I now take the prescribed medication that makes a huge difference to my life and helps me function. I still get the occasional flare up under stressful situations, but today I use tools that have helped change my life.  

Art saves lives

Art is my primary tool and it has literally saved my life.  Focusing on this exhibition during lockdown has really helped me stay positive.  Students and participants I have worked with over the years have told me time and time again that when they make art they no longer feel pain nor experience depression.  They have found the experience uplifting and it helped them cope with very low moods and gave them a reason to carry on.  

The Mask 

The mask has been a motif in my work for many years.  In an earlier version of myself as a punk and new romantic I used my body as a canvas. In my fashion career fabric, like skin, would act as a mask, as well as a literal covering of the face and body. As an artist the mask is worn in performance, literally or figuratively, as in the fabric sculpture series. 

The Wallpaper Dress, Kunstmatrix Gallery

This new show at the Kunstmatrix Gallery I am looking back over past work and looking forward, re-working pieces from the past and bringing them into the present.  The ‘Wallpaper Dress’ stands at the doorway, one of the first images you see on entering the exhibition.  The piece was made in 1993 using a process where I tore fabric into strips, marking each of the sections using narrative text and then sewing the segments back together, thus transforming them into a new shape. I subsequently used this action of making with all the fabric pieces in this exhibition. 

Re-enactment

My daughter is wearing ‘Wallpaper dress’ in this photographic still image where she contemplates the words written on the dress and then re-enacts the words through gesture and voice.  This process of re-enactment links to the last two images seen in the show from the ‘Movement Makes Marks’ series.  

I invite you to step inside my virtual exhibition and hope you enjoy the show here’s the link ‘Resilience behind the mask’