THE RIVER THAT ROSE
SERIES III (2015)
Lying on the floor is a large sheet of wet paper, almost like a bed sheet. It has on it bodily gestures and scratches that I have made, they extend till the floor, scratching the paint off it. Lying half on the paper and half off is a wet cotton sheet, the sheet is pinned down with nails, there are pools of water all over the paper and sheet, rubber bands knot up parts of the sheet making a pattern almost like knotted nipples. The end of the sheet is tied with helium balloons making the fabric rise. The work speaks of feminine sexual exploration and an aggressive suppression, yet the balloons speak of an elevation and hope. The sheet attempts to cover yet reveals more, it is the feminine. The material reaction of the water and nails is important, it addresses the issue of time, the stains that the water and metal leave speaks of age, of the slow invisible course conditioning has taken on the map of a woman’s life. The whole work is made on the floor kneeling down in an extremely submissive, domestic position (like when one is cleaning the floor). The contrast of the opposing forces of the balloons and wa¬ter give the piece a natural tension. Through all the oppressed condi¬tioning of the female, the helium balloons signify the cycle of hope, the rise and fall of it each day.
Paper, Cloth, Balloons, Pins, Rubber Bands and Water