Bubblewrap
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As a child of the early 80’s, I did not have any fidget toys. But I had bubblewrap and plenty of impulsive need for repetitive sound and touch, as well as a near constant need to order and arrange color. Bubblewrap was the original fidget popper and my relationship with this material goes way back. This body of work began physically in 2023, but mentally about a decade earlier, with the seed planted in childhood. These images are mostly from my studio as only a couple pieces have been exhibited thus far. The bubbles have not been popped. The paint is on the outside, not injected into the bubbles, multiple layers for adhesion. Some get coated in resin. Some are hung from grommets. Some are turned into sculptures. All take hyper focus and a very long time to paint. Embedded in this work is a focus on tactility and the sensory response we have to materials we deeply want to touch, but maybe can’t. The need or aversion to touch, sensory seeking and sensory avoiding behaviors, take up a lot of space in our neurodivergent household, and I have come to see the lack of tactility in the art world as an accessibility issue for some. I want to create work that not only addresses the imbedded tension in the opposition between the material being sensory in nature, functional in purpose, and yet an art object that isn’t supposed to be handled, but actually creates tension in the viewer as they deal with their very real urge to touch and pop it. I have witnessed people have to restrain themselves, and I have witnessed people incapable of restraint. This work is ongoing.