Smush & Squeeze
Simone M.
Clay
-
I approached this project with the word "metamorphosis" in mind. From there, I made a list of words that reminded me of metamorphosis. Words like smush, squeeze, and change all stuck out to me, so I used those words to do some research for inspiration on where to start. One of the artists I came across was Johnson Tsang, who ended up being a big visual inspiration for my piece. His work helped me think about metamorphosis of the body, specifically the face. I was very interested in his work with relief sculptures, and wanted to challenge myself to go further and create something in full 3D. I had never worked with clay before, so this project was a time to experiment with all kinds of different techniques; I learned to create folds and creases in the skin, and had a strong focus on creating a look of a smushed and squeezed face. During my process, I thought specifically about the culture around wanting to change your face based on societal pressures to have the “perfect” look. I thought about personally wanting control over the shape and look of your face, as well as a societal control over your face and its “metamorphosis”. I liked squeeze and smush as words of metamorphosis because they relate to this idea of pinching and poking at your face to create “perfect”. I wanted my final piece to look slightly bumpy and rough to create a more realistic representation of human skin.
-
I grew up in a very creative household, and that taught me to move through life with creativity and individually. I apply my own creative aspect to everything I do; it is a part of my everyday life. Creativity constantly challenges me and helps me find myself.
