Hi! I’m Rachel Phillips and I am one of the 5 artists currently on the Artcore Graduate Residency.
My practice is inspired by environmental issues as I recycle and reuse plastic bags as my medium. I explore the materiality of the bags by hand manipulating the material and subjecting it to heat which creates intricate textures and detail. By fusing the material together I create large scale works which envelope the viewer to induce a new sensory experience, elevating the material away from its original connotations.
Over the residency I plan to experiment with the clear plastic bags I have collected and explore how it interacts with light and air currents while considering how I can use the space to produce an experience for the viewer. The plastic itself is light so it responds well to air currents and it is already quite reflective, therefore I aim to work into the material to enhance and exaggerate these qualities.
During my first week at the residency I began to experiment with my material by attempting to change its translucency. I then referred to my verb list and started folding, heating, creasing, ripping, pulling the material and considered how these actions alter the materials interaction with light and air.
Over the second week I want to figure out how I can develop these experiments on a larger scale to create more immense pieces.
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