Works from the ‘Crudités’ s…
Works from the ‘Crudités’ series
By Svava Tergesen
Curated by Andrea Valentine-Lewis, Burrard Arts Foundation (BAF)
Crudités was created during a period when artist Svava Tergesen lost all appetite due to chronic illness and disability. Stuck inside her house, Tergesen took stock of the materials she had on hand – in this case, all of the uneaten foods that filled her fridge and were beginning to spoil. In not being able to eat food, she took to photographing it as a means ‘consuming’ it without actually eating it.
In creating these inedible food sculptures made of geometrically woven skins, Tergesen aims to reflect notions of women’s craft labour and the abject – a notion Julia Kristeva describes as the “in-between, the ambiguous, the composite.” Using disguise and ornamentation, the foods ask questions about their identities and try to be something other than what they are. Using collage and sculptural techniques, the once familiar connotations of these foods are stripped away, and a space is opened up for the object to be determined as a material in and of itself. By placing the foods on top of her clothing and other textiles, she attempts to bring them into proximity with her body even when she was unable to consume them herself. Ultimately, the photographs attempt to mince the differences between bodily appetite and visual satisfaction. (Source: Artist’s own words)
Additional note: The materials for Crudités – the fruits and foods – were predominantly sourced at the T&T Supermarket at Marine Gateway, right next to the Marine Drive Canada Line Station.
Presented in partnership with Capture Photography Festival and the Canada Line Public Art Program – InTransitBC
