Helen Carnac
British Artist, Maker & Curator
‘LOOKING AT HER WORK & INSTALLATIONS, ONE IS REMINDED OF THE MANY COMPONENTS CARNAC HAS ASSEMBLED: WHAT SHE’S SEEN, WHERE SHE’S BEEN, SHAPES OF THINGS AND THE SPACES THEY LEAVE BEHIND. CARNAC’S METHOD IS, FOR HER, THE PERFECT MARRIAGE OF MATERIAL, TOOL & PROCESS’. (SIMON, M. METALSMITH, 2015)
My work explores the explicit connections between material, process, and maker. I have worked with many materials in numerous contexts but my area of expertise is the combination of vitreous enamel and steel; a process and material most usually found in an industrial context, but one that I explore as an art practice. I am interested in how one material might be known through another and through a particular knowledge of metal my approach has been to test and explore other materials and processes.
Recent work has included projects with furniture designer David Gates, based on the structures and surfaces of the architecture along the Thames, which was close to our London studio. I am currently exploring ways in which materials can co-exist and support each other and how these materials change together over time in different environments. In 2019 I undertook a residency at UCL’s Institute of Making where I explored this further. Having recently relocated our home and studio to rural Somerset I am developing new work, which will no doubt reflect something of this new location.
Studio Photos by Alun Callender
