imprint
Open weekends 12-4 September 12th-27th, 2020
“Cocoon is the place where you sew yourself back together before you step outside into a new life… how do we prepare ourselves for a future that holds the unexpected?” G. Doyle
The word imprint, used metaphorically, suggests an involuntary way in which humans shape themselves and are shaped over time through interpersonal relationships and circumstances. Negotiating life’s rhythms: joys and sorrows; opportunities and challenges; struggles and successes, creates experiences and memories that leave lasting impressions. These influence how we continually evolve into who we are and who we become.
Time spent in the studio over months of social distancing and isolation due to the pandemic informed the sculptures and drawings in this installation. During this period of cocooning and turning inward, there has been sanctuary and quiet, darkness and melancholy, and renewed gratitude for the people whose support makes a positive difference in life.
Sculptural elements in this exhibition were constructed using primarily tissue paper, sewing patterns and beeswax representing the stability of family and friends. The vellum, linseed oil and charcoal used for the drawings allude to the ephemeral nature of circumstances beyond our control.
As relationships and experiences imprint as memory, traces are left behind, and impressions carry forward begging the question – what might the future hold?
Regan Rasmussen
Regan Rasmussen is an interdisciplinary artist whose studio practice is informed by the phenomenology of lived experience and human interactions. She holds undergraduate and graduate degrees in studio and visual arts-based research from University of Saskatchewan, University of Manitoba and University of Victoria, BC. In addition to her studio practise, she teaches at University of Victoria and is committed to arts advocacy in the community. Her work has been shown in public and private galleries in Canada, and the UK.