ARTIST STATEMENT
I create corporeal crochet sculptures that engage and respond to themes of memory and trauma. My works are limited to flesh-like hues, a palette of browns and pinks referenced from my complexion as well as the body’s interior. Each sculpture is pierced through a meat hook and hung as though it were butchered carnage which I then contort and suspend. Their limp suspension in air acts as a visual representation of my experiences with dissociation. This results in sculptures that teeter on the line between tender and grotesque. I use materials such as yarn, latex and wire. Yarn is used to create the sculpture’s outer layer which I refer to as ‘skin’. I exclusively use crochet as it is the only textile technique that cannot be replicated by machinery, further emphasizing the importance of the hand. I become transfixed in crochet’s repetitive action and allow it to contaminate all aspects of my life. My sculptures begin at a memory that I will then deconstruct and analyze using feminist psychoanalytic text. The notes I extract from these readings are what guide my sketch. The ‘skins’ are made from adaptations of patterns or patterns I create using mathematics and number sequences like Pi. These ‘skins’ are then taut around a wire armature which is in reference to my sketch. I’ve recently begun delving into video art within my practice. These works center similar themes but take a more personal approach as I will often incorporate materials like home footage and audio recordings.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Ophelia Arc is a multidisciplinary artist based in New York City. Using sculpture, video and installation Arc investigates psychoanalytic themes as they relate to her personal experience and memories. Ophelia has shown pieces at galleries such as No Format in London UK, Studio 3 in Brooklyn Ny and Still Very Nameless in Wayne Indiana. Ophelia is currently completing a fellowship at the Chrysalis Institute for Emerging Artists and has an upcoming solo show at 4Elements in Utica NY as well as a group show at Westbeth Gallery and Whitebox in NYC.