Katie-Louise Tyson- MA Fine Art
Clabric
My practice explores the relationship between material, sculpture, space and the body through an ongoing process of experimentation. I have developed Clabric, a material made by combining reclaimed textiles with recycled porcelain clay slip. The process transforms soft, familiar fabrics into rigid sculptural forms while retaining traces of their previous use through seams, creases, folds and surface marks.
I am interested in allowing the material to participate in the making process rather than completely controlling its final form. Gravity, moisture, tension, support and orientation all influence how Clabric develops, meaning that each piece can retain evidence of the conditions in which it was made. Through repeated experimentation, I use these changes and unexpected outcomes to develop new ways of working.
My work has developed from individual material experiments into large-scale sculptural installations. I am particularly interested in creating structures that can be approached, entered and moved through, exploring how sculpture can alter a person’s physical experience of space. My recent work uses the form of a threshold as a starting point for considering movement, encounter and the relationship between the body and material.
Moving forward, I want to continue developing Clabric through larger spatial environments and explore the possibilities of colour within the material itself. I am interested in how colour, alongside the existing folds, textures and traces held within Clabric, could further change how these spaces are experienced.
