Sonya Clark is the Chair of the Craft and Material Studies department at VCU. She began her lecture by conversing with the class and explaining the reasoning behind the materials she works with, particularly how textile and fabric are most omnipresent in craft.
I was especially interested in her work with human hair; she explained that hair is form of identity, both in its depiction of the passage of time as well as containing our DNA. DNA plays a role in her work with other materials as well, for instance her chromosome details made of beads. In fact, one can see her concepts interwoven throughout her portfolio, such as in her silk-screened fingerprints and structures made with black plastic combs. She also sometimes aesthetically combines pieces from separate series, such as taking from her "Hands" and "Roots" series and creating a beaded hand with roots.
Her materials correspond specifically with her concepts, the importance of which she stressed. She also emphasized the ubiquity of textiles; while some of her work employs other materials, such as beads and copper, I found myself most drawn to those made with textiles (the Hair series and the thumb print silk-screens in particular). The piece "Hair Wreath," made of human hair and wire, was especially intriguing to me as it reminded me of a crown of thorns.
Though I have done very little in terms of craft and material work, I have always been interested in mixed media and hearing artists discuss the reasoning behind their chosen media. This, as well as the intrigue of seeing work in a medium I'm not as familiar with, made Sonya Clark's lecture particularly enjoyable.
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