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| Kath Fries, Strand, 2011, nylon (synthetic hair extensions), electrical cord, light bulb, detail view, part of Affinity group exhibition, Gallery Eight, Millers Point Sydney |
Strand explores connections between memory and the body, by manipulating the viewer’s visceral reactions to a common everyday substance - hair. A person's hair can provoke polarized responses, in some circumstances it is a beautifying adornment, signalling seduction. But when discarded, hair strands become a revolting abject substance, tangled in a bathroom drain. In Strand, nylon (synthetic hair extensions) bind an electrical current, forming a poetic metaphor about intimate connections between people. Like a lover's lock of hair traditionally kept as a memento and the sense of intimacy evoked when finding another person's strand of hair on one's skin or clothing.
The transience of existence and fragility of life are recurring themes throughout my art practice. My work explores materiality, spatiality and archetypical narratives by marking a personal, immediate engagement with time, place and physicality. I use domestic materials and natural elements to create site-sensitive installations linking one’s present experience to boarder considerations of humanity, history and future continuation.
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| Kath Fries, Strand, 2011, nylon (synthetic hair extensions), electrical cord, light bulb, installed at Gallery Eight, Millers Point Sydney, as part of Affinity group exhibition |
Strand is currently being shown as part of Affinity group exhibition at Gallery Eight. Affinity explores intimacy in all its forms and incarnations involving relationships with the self, the other, places or objects, the physical and the emotional. Artists have called into question the notion of closeness through a wide range of practices and mediums. Loneliness, sexuality, the home, touch and emotional vulnerability are all themes explored by the artists involved.
Artists: Amanda Humphries, Amy Gardner, Becky Gibson, Celine Roberts, Danielle Tam, Isabella Andronos, Jessica Tse, Kath Fries, Mandy Schöne-Salter, Maz Dixon, Yvette Marie Tzalias
28 October - 17 November, 2011
Gallery Eight, 12 Argyle Place, Millers Point, Sydney NSW 2000
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| Kath Fries, Strand, 2011, nylon (synthetic hair extensions), electrical cord and light bulb, detail view, part of Affinity group exhibition at Gallery Eight, Millers Point Sydney |
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