Yellow Line Field 2012

Yellow Line Field is a site specific installation made especially for the Ffloc gallery at the University of Wales, Newport. It uses just two elements, plastic coated washing line and light, to create a vivid field of colour that dominates the darkened room. The yellow lengths of line are arranged vertically on the wall and are backlit to provide the only source of light in the space.

The lines are arranged in parallel, with a precision that belies their ordinariness while the transmitted light reveals their luminous colour. Our familiarity with the material is only revealed on close inspection but at the same time, the rigid pattern causes an optical effect where the lines appear to flicker, disturbing the viewer’s perception as the whole image appears to shift.

The work reveals the artist’s fascination with the hidden aesthetic of the everyday, and the search for the accidental qualities that mass produced objects may have as a by-product of their material qualities. This relationship between the material and the light is somewhat theatrical and serves to reveal an otherwise unconsidered aspect of its existence.