Serrah Russell

serrahrussell.com | @serrahrussell

Memorial deconstructed: Serrah Russell reflects on the emotional impact of isolation in fragmented and pared-down collages, culled from images of bronze statues.

Serrah Russell Testimonial:

I made this work during a smoke event here in Seattle that lasted over 10 days. Like many places, the air was unhealthy, so I didn't leave the house for over a week. I acknowledge that being able to stay home with my family and keep safe and healthy is a privilege, but at the time it felt more like a curse. I am a full-time caregiver to my 1-year-old son and had already felt at the edge of my capacity with a lack of resources and socialization due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This smoke event added another type of pandemic, a new version of isolation, and took away my last bit of sanity - daily walks in our neighborhood and social interactions at a distance in our backyard.

I felt depressed, overwhelmed, exhausted, helpless, and deeply sad.

As the days went on, and the smoke stayed, I eventually found myself in my studio. In my studio, with the blinds closed, I couldn't know what color the sky was. I could escape to somewhere else. I could let go of what I could not control.

These new works of collage on paper mimic the feelings of the oppression of smoke, the anxiety of the unseen wildfires. They are hand-cut collages created using photographs of cast bronze sculptures. I reconfigured the images, taking the material of the sculptures but not their form. At times, I removed the sculptures entirely, and used the surrounding background, revealing the absence of what was and the presence of what is now. The collages are muted, twisting and growing. I didn't make this connection at the time but now looking back, it is fitting that the imagery I used was bronze. Bronze is an early form of artmaking, almost elemental, and requires heat and fire to be formed. I wonder what the fire is forming in us and in our world? I wonder what the smoke is revealing as it conceals? Can the loss and destruction bring about clarity and focus?

The smoke has lifted and passed onto somewhere else, but like a bad dream, I am haunted by it still. I look up at the blue sky, one that I was so certain in the days of smoke that I would never again take for granted, and yet I have. These works seek to serve as a reminder and a memorial.

Checklist:

1. Untitled, collage, 14” x 17” 2020, $500

2. Untitled, collage, 14” x 17” 2020, $500

3. Untitled, collage, 14” x 17” 2020, $500

4. Untitled, collage, 14” x 17” 2020, $500