LA CUEILETTE
La cueillette is an exploration into the hyper-sensitivity of touch, both physical or digital, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Living in a suburban area with sprawling greenspace, daily walks in nature have become my main form of interaction with the outside world; the collecting and gathering of natural materials serving as a source of grounding during this turbulent time. While the touch of nature has provided immense comfort over the past few months, it hasn’t been without a fair amount of apprehension. In a time where the common enemy is invisible to the human eye, certain questions come to mind when considering touch: Who has touched this object before (if anyone)? What are the chances that the virus might be lurking on this surface? If I do decide to touch, what precautions should I be taking to ensure my safety? With the comfort of physical touch now comes risk, and while the level of contraction is low when dealing with nature, the apprehension is still present. The scanning of these materials, often captured in a moment of physical touch with myself, adds another layer to the conundrum of touch in our current situation. To scan an object requires physical touch against the glass plate, yet the resultant image is void of danger, untouchable to the physical body. In this case, to scan is to sterilize, to create a new object that separates the physical body from the object of touch. This leads to a new series of questions: What does it mean to touch in the digital realm? What can be said about the translation of touch, from the physical manipulation of a scanner and computer to the controlling of the cursor on a screen? There must be something to be said about cursors often being designed to look like a hand when ‘touch’ is available. My intention with this project is not to make any definitive statements or provide any solutions, but rather to open up conversations about the varying roles of touch during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Emily Spooner
Emily Spooner is an interdisciplinary artist based in Montréal, Québec. Her interest in psychology has fostered an artistic practice that explores the human psyche through a cyclical creative process, alternating between free-form creation and focused analysis. Spooner’s work has been shown in various group shows throughout Montréal, most notably the exhibition Five Crucial Tips to Outrun Marina Abramović as part of the 2017 edition of the Art Souterrain Festival. In 2019, she was selected to be part of the second cohort of ARTCH, an initiative of Art Souterrain and CJE Montréal Centre-Ville. She received her BFA from Concordia University in 2020.
Emily Spooner’s artistic practice is a means of engaging with the human psyche through intuitive creation. Drawing upon their own lived experience, Spooner interested in rendering tangible the language of symbols that stems from my sensorial and psychological understanding of human experience. In doing so, Spooner is building a microcosm of objects and imagery uniquely related to their own psyche as a form of self-portraiture. These projects often incorporate sculpture, writing, documented performative actions, and photography, with the ultimate goal of combining works to create larger scale installations. Oftentimes, the subject matter of a certain project will only become apparent once the work is complete or well on its way, at which point it can be further explored through conscious intention. It’s a cycle between free-form creation and focused analysis.