Amy Donnell

Inward Light

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Crystal Chain Gang II, Elam, 2016.

I have set out to engage the viewer in an enchanted way of seeing which allows them to slow down and connect with their surroundings.

My project seeks to bring a sense of transcendence as a way of eliciting an engagement with imagination. We often take light, atmosphere and the repeated shapes in nature for granted, and these acted as inspiration for my sculptures. I was interested, too, in how architecture can relate to organic forms and shapes.

I have explored crystal-like geometric shapes and their interaction with natural light, experimenting with making my own abstract crystal forms, imitating mineral and organic crystal structures. My process with steel refers to a sense of growing and expanding bond by bond; I join steel rods together as a form of three-dimensional mark making, each new piece responding under my direction to the previous piece. I am influenced by the way Anthony Gormley uses steel in space and how Veronica Ann Janssens uses light as a way of engaging perception. Thus I have utilised the perception of light to re-enchant my steel sculptures.

My installation is constituted as a ternary structure entailing a wall at 255-259 Symonds Street, and two sites in the school (a stairwell and a foyer). 



The Symonds Street work, called Shadow Drawings, was first installed as a part of an off-site exhibition: What do I want? Where do I stand? (September 2016). Shadow Drawings, a sculptural installation of three crystal-like metal sculptures, hangs on a large north-facing wall, tracking the movement of light and passing of time, making passers-by stop and take a second look. In the stairwell, crystal forms ask the viewer to look upwards and investigate from different viewing angles throughout the stairwell so as to see each facet of its structure. The foyer site condenses and combines the two other works, serving as a metaphor for enchantment in combining perceptive shifts, viewing angles and light movement through time. 

 
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Shadow Drawings, 255-259 Symonds Street, 2016.
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Shadow Drawings Marquette, Elam, 2016.
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