Emma Yorke
Views From The Boundary Layer
‘Living within the boundary layer prolongs the window of opportunity for growth.’
Robin Wall Kimmerer
This body of work has grown out of many years of walking, wild swimming, collecting and paying close attention. Revisiting the same sites over many years, and drawing on scientific data, memory, embodied experiences and the writings of others, I developed these highly personal views of places that I hold dear. Working with photography, collections, text, stitch and repurposed materials, each piece intertwines multiple stories learned through head, heart and hand, and speaks to the increasingly present threat of species loss and environmental collapse that we are experiencing due to the climate emergency. Whilst referencing this narrative of loss, the work remains celebratory and hopeful in tone, with the intention of connecting the viewer to the richness and beauty around us.
The exhibition was presented simultaneously online by Tebbs Contemporary and in the physical space of the Gardens Gallery in Cheltenham. The online exhibition provided the opportunity to re-imagine the work pieces for the digital space, offering something connected to, but materially different from, the original work.
Please click on the link below to watch my artist's talk about the show hosted by Tebbs Contemporary
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A95uyI0FzGk
The catalogue from the exhibition produced by Tebbs Contemporary is available here in PDF format
A selection of pieces from the show is shown below
'The Lies We Tell', site-specific cyanotype with found plastic thread, 2021. In memory of a green algae bloom caused by agricultural chemical run off into the Baltic Sea.
'Gallitrops in Blind Yeo Stream', site-specific cyanotype with found plastic thread, 2021. The colour coded circles denote 5 years of water quality data showing the declining health of the stream .
'Plim Plash', found plastic and plant dyed bamboo threads on reclaimed duvet cover/ studio painting cloth, 2021. A favourite swim spot on the River Windrush. Environment Agency data reveals the presence of banned chemicals dangerous to all aquatic life.
