The Narrative of Origins
What is the narrative of origins? It is the narrative of interiority and authenticity. It is not a narrative of the object; it is a narrative of the possessor.
Susan Stewart (2007:136)
I am interested in exploring the qualities of souvenirs. This exploration raises questions regarding the nature of souvenirs, what they represent and what feelings and responses they evoke. The souvenir is often regarded as a degraded item and I use paint to highlight the confusion between what is an artefact, and therefore potentially highly prized, and Tat, Kitsch and the personal. My work explores mark making and its relationship to nostalgia, memory, loss and longing. I use the materiality of the paint to express my own and the objects’ feelings, all of which contribute to the sense of the past being fixed in the present.
