Though several of the artists and works listed on my critical context page in Unit 2 continue to influence me, the following artists are new additions who have informed my wider context in this unit.
To see more direct influences on my unit 3 work, see this.
Bruce Nauman
Bruce Nauman's body of work throws up intriguing perspectives with his ability to find unique ways of looking at ordinary things. With regard to my practice, I was particularly influenced by his work, 'For Beginners' which looks at a variety of combinations that thumbs and fingers can make. This capacity for multiplicity has been very relevant to my practice.
Thao Nguyen Phan
Thao Nguyen Phan's work 'Mute Grain' has a component that is a three-screen installation. The installation shows a film that combines a deeply personal narrative with history and art. It is a great example of how artists can distill personal narratives to make something very public-facing and meaningful.
Monica Heller
The creatures Monica Heller makes with her 3D art are curious and sometimes disturbing. They have a quality of drawing you in with their movements and exaggerations. I have a feeling I have been aspiring to this quality when making my own 3D art.
To represent the vast abyss of human existentialism on a piece of silk is no mean feat, and Emma Talbot does exactly that. Seeing her work, I thought that the piece of silk represents the whole journey, but it is broken up with smaller, sometimes out-of-context paintings that reflect our emotional landscapes.
Arati Akkapeddi
In her most recent work, Arati Akkapeddi used AI and an archive of studio photographs taken in South India to create images that typify studio visuals of the time. She layers these works with the stories of people in the photographs and the behavior that was expected to be shown in these photos. The sheer depth of narrative stratification achieved by this work was very inspiring.