Artist’s Statement
For this project, we were asked to use our learned methods of mold making with alginate and plaster to create a sculpture that emanated the concept of a body hybrid. Ultimately, I interpreted this idea of a body hybrid being a combination of bodily elements to create a conceptual sculpture relating back to our theme of community. In terms of combining different elements of the body, I wanted to incorporate everyday objects along with the body parts to make more practical use out of it. Looking for inspiration throughout the research period, I came up with the idea of combining a teacup with a hand and an ear. In coming up with this concept, I just thought about the elements that a teacup had and replaced them with body parts. The ear replaces the teacup handle and the hand acts as the surface with which the teacup stands on.
Tea parties became a thing during the early nineteenth century in England where the wealthy would drink tea with snacks as a fashionable societal event. Soon others would join in on this social gathering and it has thus become a tradition. Tea parties became an important event where men and women could meet freely. It’s also relevant in bringing together old friends and new ones. Tea time’s a significant part in bringing together community even in modern times. Today, we are more keen on coffee and tea gatherings in small cafes and whatnot, but the origins of tea parties still play an integral part in our daily lives. Sitting down for coffee and tea is a big part of bringing communities together. It forces people to step out of their “technology bubbles” and into a more social setting of talking and face-to-face gatherings. I think my idea of adding the hand and the ear to a teacup says a lot about how we interpret social gatherings now. The hand represents this tendency for personal connection through physical contact and the ear demonstrates our willingness to listen to people when they communicate to us.
I think the most difficult part of the process was creating the hand part of the sculpture. I had to mold my hand in the perfect position that would keep the teacup up and I tried this twice before I got the perfect posture. My hand was also very delicate when it came out as plaster, so the fingers had the tendency to break off very often, which I had to fix. Attaching the parts of the teacup also proved to be a challenge because the parts were already premade and I had to attach them with new fresh plaster. In the end, I think my sculpture was a success and demonstrate the themes of body hybrid and community very clearly.
