Sophie Mason - Route III
89 x 124 cm, walnut ink, iron, Mediterranean sea water, soil, olive bark, lemon juice, burnt thyme, rain water, gallnut ink, snail slime, city dust, feather strokes, sand, sun bleach, succulent sap, rosemary water, stitching on canvas, 2020
Sophie Mason
Sophie’s practice uses accessible routes into the monumental subject of nature and what it means to be part of an ecosystem. Through gardening, performative painting, functional sculpture and drawing. Working on edges of a city where, between the train tracks and the road, there lies a space rich with potential. She dyes rolls of canvas with plants from the local area, then over many months, uses the fabric as an intermediary for actions within nature. The residual build up of stains creates a map of the land and the physical body on the blanket. She explores the idea that significance can be accumulated through time, wear and affection. Fragments of blankets are exhibited as stretched paintings and others take on a more domestic aspect with folds stitched in.