Georgina Bown: Minefield

Georgina Bown is an artist based near the East Lothian coast in Scotland. Her proximity to the sea has formed a fascination with sea-going vessels such as submarines and a background in metal sculpture facilitates an appreciation of their engineering and construction. In addition to sculpture, she often incorporates drawing and printmaking into her practice.

"I'm a visual artist and sculptor currently trapped at home with my two boys and finding a way to relate my personal feelings towards the Covid-19 pandemic. My work usually focuses on nautical man-made monsters of the sea. I felt compelled to produce some large scale drawings depicting how I and maybe others feel in this unpredictable and threatening situation. To me its like an invisible minefield, that moment's chance of breathing in contaminated matter or touching a virus-carrying person, all our usual instincts to touch, nurture, feel, comfort are restricted.

I began to introduce sea mines to give my work a nautical theme and was instantly surprised between the similarity in shape of the mines and the virus molecules. Ordering some large paper, I cleared the dining room wall and went for it. Maybe it’s the contact of charcoal, hands on paper, the process being tactile and moulded by my hands, the hands that cannot touch anything outside of my home. I have portrayed the mines suspended in a motionless space, waiting to be triggered by contact, menacing and deadly.

I hope my work expresses this delicate position and how human touch has become a precarious thing. I have now completed two large charcoal and pastel drawings  'Minefield 1' and 'Minefield 2'. The drawings are two metres across echoing the social distancing enforced on our lives. I have also produced a time-lapse video of the work in progress."

You can see more of Georgina's work on her website, or follow her on Facebook.

CuratorSpace are currently featuring articles by artists, curators and organisations who want to share their experiences of responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, whether that is artists using their practice as a way of exploring new boundaries of isolation, or as a way to connect more broadly with their communities. We are also interested in hearing from curators and organisations who are offering support to artists and audiences during this time.

Contact us at louise@curatorspace.com to share your story.
 

More news