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2020vision Merchants Connected ArchivesSue Platt - November/December 2011
Sue Platt - The Imaginarium of The Bizarre and The Mysterious - 4th November - 15th December 2011
Since the 1990s, Sue's work has been concerned with the inherent history in a found object, exploring the duality of ‘real' objects within an artistic context.
The juxtaposition of ‘things in boxes' suggests relationships and dialogues between the objects, enhanced and intensified by their containment or enclosure behind glass.
Sue is fascinated by the notion of collections and collecting, Wonder Rooms and Cabinets of Curiosities are treasure troves of found objects waiting to tell their collective stories, which change and evolve depending on what is exhibited in them.
The work questions her desire (and others) to collect and accumulate disparate objects and artefacts and invites the viewer to ponder on the associations and analogies created. It can be likened to reminiscing about a past you never knew but the objects help you to discover.
Printmaking is another very personal and spontaneous way of documenting Sue's discoveries. The printmaking processes used are in the main collagraphs and monoprints. Both are versatile mediums and very close to drawing but using an etching press. Into these prints are also embedded lino cuts, drypoint, etchings, drawings, rubbings, japanese papers and sometimes found objects using a process called Chine Colle.
The prints create a duality by extracting the essence of the 3 dimensional works whilst translating them into two dimensional imagery.
“My work involves sculpture/assemblage using Found Objects, installation, printmaking, painting, mixed media and drawing. I am fascinated by the notion of collecting and display, and am particularly interested in Cabinets of Curiosities and Wonder Rooms. This has opened up a whole world of research to me and I am constantly on the lookout for curious objects and artefacts that reflect the kinds of things that were collected in these cabinets from the 1600s onwards. As collectors were known to do in those times, if something comes along to be added to their collection, such as a mythical creature with no way of proving that the things didn’t exist, they would turn a blind eye to the fact that a mermaid (for example) was in fact half fish, half monkey covered in tar to preserve it and proudly present it in their cabinets. If I can’t find a mermaid, then I will make one. My mermaid is quite small and is preserved in a glass jar. It is said to have been discovered at the bottom of the Pacific ocean, in the Mariana Trench, the deepest in the world.”
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Sue Platt lives in the Pennine village of Delph in Saddleworth, on the border of Yorkshire and Greater Manchester.
Graduating in 1996 with 1st class honours in the Visual Arts, Sue then went onto gain a PGCE in Art and Design, and has taught in various colleges and run printmaking workshops at Gallery Oldham and worked with community groups.
She now concentrates on her own work, exhibiting widely in the UK and has work in a number of private and corporate collections.
Website – www.sue-platt.com
Email – sueplatt_art@yahoo.co.uk
