Beyond Beauty, to Something Otherworldly: Kate MccGwire's 'Scissure'
At After Nyne we've long been followers of Kate MccGwire's work. To come upon her feather sculptures for the first time is to meet an artist who recognises the beauty of nature, yet has strength enough to test the form to its limits. She never fails to take the viewer's breath away.
Since graduating from the Royal College of Art in 2004 her uncanny sculptures have been exhibited at the Saatchi Gallery (London), the Museum of Art and Design (New York), Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature (Paris) and recently at Glasstress, an official collateral event of the Venice Biennale.
Ahead of her latest show in Paris, Kate took time out of her preparations to talk to After Nyne about how this show is so different from her last work. And how the fragility of nature hides a certain darkness.
Kate, how would you describe the Scissure exhibition?
As a body of work the sculptures in Scissure are more intimate than many of my other pieces; the purity of the white feathers is at first charming, the pieces seem delicate, precious even, however on closer inspection these fragile beings have teeth and barbs, they’re ripped, retrained, and in turmoil. Forms that once seemed innocent suddenly seem aggressive and dominant.
It’s a departure from your recent work; what inspired this change?
I feel it’s a bit of a celebration of darkness and light, a minimal Vanitas, where I’ve used the purity of white feathers, the angular boney protrusions of pigeon quills, and the dark but delicate mark making of maggots. I’ve always been a collector, a hoarder, I save every bit of the feather, from the quill to the plumage, the entirety of the object is interesting to me. The works in Scissure harness these “forgotten” materials, the quills, the trimmings, and the less iridescent.
For Scissure I have also experimented with a new form of life drawing, displaying a series of graphite drawings created by maggots crawling across a paper surface. The Vermiculus series echoes the darkness and light of the exhibition, the instinctive movement of the maggots towards the shadows results in knotted tendrils of graphite, a visceral imprint of the movement, behaviour and ritual.
Your work has an otherworldly quality…you seem to be at the same time working with natural form and breaking the mould. What inspires you?
Nature will always be my predominant inspiration; the materiality of feathers, the behaviour of water, and the mythology of birds are things I feel carry endless possibilities to explore and investigate. The contrast of opposites, of the authentic and impossible, the beautiful and the threatening, is something I enjoy toying with, the paradox of conflict is inspiring.
For this exhibition, you literally have taken a journey. Tell us a little about this, and how it’s fed into the exhibition.
My current journey across Europe in my studio barge and my time spent on the waterways of Belgium and France has certainly influenced the temper of the work. The experience has been tumultuous and rewarding in equal measure; on the surface, life on the river is serene and peaceful, however there is no safety net, no familiar territory, there’s something liberating about having to consider where you’ll be sourcing water that day or checking your location on a real physical map. The whole experience is closer to nature, beautiful moments, but also animalistic at the same time, and I think that’s been reflected in the work.
How much of yourself to you put into your work?
Now that would be telling… I have my own sentiments that I’d like them to evoke, but ultimately the impression is in the eye of the beholder.
What has been your favourite exhibition/commission so far?
I love creating site-specific installations within historical buildings so I think that Evacuate at Tatton Park is one of my favourites. It was also the first time I had worked with game feathers so opened up a whole new palate and discussion for me.
What would you like the viewer to take away from the new show?
For those familiar with my work I hope they’d be surprised at the delicacy of the new materials and change of scale. For those who happen upon it, I’d like them to find it curious and alluring, seduced but gifted with a sort of creeping disquietude.
SCISSURE: Kate MccGwire
La Galerie Particulière
16 Rue du Perche, 75003 Paris, France
3 September - 15 October 2016
