Uncovered and… then some

About

Although different in form, technique, and material, each artist brings a level of sophistication and intrigue to their extraordinary sculptures. As they walk the line between self-expression and technical mastery, both Terra Goolsby and Jacqueline Overby explore the transformative power of the female form, while Candace Hicks examines redundant coincidences and the abundant possibilities of the blank page. 

Inspired by her Mexican heritage and supernatural stories about Meso-American characters, artist Terra Goolsby, uses materials and studio processes that relate to the concepts within the myths and cultural values that she explores. Goolsby’s work consists of a variety of tactile materials including porcelain, fur, quartz, and bone, establishing a bond between her ancestral tradition while placing an emphasis on materiality. Her work examines surface, tactility, and form; the exteriors are slick and reflective, contrasting with the interiors that are soft and comforting. Akin to Meret Oppenheim, Goolsby’s work is visually sensuous and delves into the darker aspects of femininity, connecting old narratives and new cultural assessments of female sexuality.

As an ardent reader, Candace Hicks naturally gravitated towards creating her artist books. Hicks started her Common Threads series 18 years ago, filling Composition books with coincidences found in several literary works on her reading list. Her scrutiny of repetition then took form of hand-stitched texts, creating a narrative that navigates fictional universes. Sewing every line, letter, and illustration in the books enhances their status as objects. By laboring over globally recognized Composition books, and painstakingly recreating them by hand, Hicks has found a way to express the insignificant as potentially philosophical. From this series, emerges the artist’s most recent body of work Notes for String Theory – hand embroidered pages that confront the existential possibilities of the blank page. In response to “writer/reader/artist’s block”, Hicks started to explore and conceptualize the generic sheet of paper, utilizing the line and the potential held therein. 

Jacqueline Overby’s needle-felted sculptures act as a gateway into the vulnerability of the female form and its relationship to society’s unrealistic beauty standards, physical and mental abuse, and sexual trauma. A large portion of her practice serves to process her own issues with mental health, self-image, and sexual desires. Being a trauma survivor, her needle-felting process of repeatedly stabbing fibers back into themselves serves as a way to meditate and heal, often aided by her sense of humor. “Sometimes exhibiting bright venomous hues, not unlike what poisonous animals use to ward off predators, I am interested in the role that color plays in the psychological response to a piece.” 

Overby’s vibrant needle-felted artwork manifests the idea that great creativity, progress, and healing transcend pain.