On Skin, by Yuko Edwards
5th to 26th November 2022
private view: Friday 4th November, 17:30-19:30
open Wednesday-Saturday 12:30-5:30pm
Free entry
This exhibition showcases work from Yuko Edwards’ on-going project On Skin.
On Skin is a response to the covid pandemic and the civil unrest that occurred in response to the murder of George Floyd by American police. During this time, while we sheltered in place, at least 6 million people are estimated to have died across the world from the corona virus. Many more people and loved ones faced unprecedented impact and harm as a result of infections and/or governmental restrictions put in place to combat the pandemic. The value of our bodies became clearer as did societal inequality. Racial and gender injustice also came into sharp focus.
“How do we put ourselves back together again? What are the past lessons we can draw from and share with each other to help in this period of despair?”
In this exhibition, artist and filmmaker Yuko Edwards explores individual wounds and individual efforts to heal. Through storytelling, photography, video and the practice of suture stitching, On Skin acknowledges the mental and physical wounds we live with. What do they tell us about society? What do they tell us about ourselves? The scar becomes a point of reflection, and the healing process provides stories of human resilience and the endurance required to survive the modern world.
Visitors will be invited to contribute their own stories of wounds, scars and markings by suturing skin-like material with the same set of tools a doctor uses. Bringing On Skin to Studio KIND. allows the work to incorporate experiences unique to the local people and community in North Devon.
Yuko Edwards is an American artist based in Bristol, UK. On Skin was developed during her solo show at Bricks Bristol, St. Anne’s House. Her 8-foot skeletal quilt and companion video work is currently on view at Somerset House, London in their summer exhibition, Eternally Yours: Care, Repair and Healing.
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