Susan Jacobs: Studio Works

Sarah Scout Presents is delighted to present three new studio works by Susan Jacobs:

Cope, Coping evolved from a series of works which trace the etymological roots of the word COPE, extending from the Greek; Kolaphos and Old French; Colper ‘a blow’, ‘to come to blows’ – the meaning of which evolved by the c18th; ‘to handle successfully’. Basic tools act as mechanisms for support for a pair of small dried fish. The hard and soft coexist to embody physical and linguistic turns.

The tension of the warp and weft threads in the weaving of Seersucker, causes the fabric to be held away from the skin, allowing air circulation. Used as a rudimentary mould, this immediate space for air is filled with the inner stuff of taxidermy, a material used to model forms which are concealed by skin and fur. A compressed mass of unrefined hemp speaks to the fibre of a woven support in its raw state, also appearing as porous mane. Preserved pet treats are cast in the same material that traps them, wide-eyed in freeze-dried arcs, echoing the contours of a face.

Seer/Sucker conflates natural and synthetic orders, through applied and implied forces. The puckered cloth and remnants of plastic are held in contrast yet are manifest through the same material - a pliable plastic mass that takes on contrasting textures to mess with the optics of the given situation. Small holes, made in the process of compression become a method of extrusion; allowing natural clay to be squeezed through the surface. Lifeless, airless matter gives way to the smallest signs of earth.

Photography: Lauren Dunn