Yasmine Childs

Untitled, 2020

Painting: oil on canvas
37.5cm x 30cm

Still lingering in mind, 2019

Painting: oil on canvas, pencil drawing
38cm x 20cm

Untitled, 2019

Painting: oil on canvas
21cm x 48cm

Piecing the memories of home, 2019

Painting: oil on canvas
42cm x 29cm

Into Nothingness, 2019

Painting: oil on canvas
52cm x 34cm

Untitled, 2018

Painting: oil on canvas
34cm x 28cm

Artist Statement

During the course of my final year at Parsons, I have thought about themes such as the home, negative space, the notion of a presence within an absence and vise versa. I was making paintings which drew on memory and created a feeling of nostalgia. As well as this, thoughts concerning my dreams came into play, as I am interested in how the conscious and unconscious intertwine with one another. As a result, my paintings, held a feeling of absence, a kind of silence which you can accept and perhaps feel comfort in, somewhere between the known and the unknown.

This is a crazy time that we’re living in and my circumstances have shifted along the way. I began my quarantine in New York but as pressure rose, flew home to the UK. Without the space of my studio to work in or the materials, that I am now lacking, it has been difficult to continue with my practice. However, these eery, unknowing times coincide with my work a lot and have had me thinking even more about silence, time and the home. I have thought a lot about how much beauty can be found in all of these things despite the anxiety they may also create.

I have taken this time to think about what I need for myself, as well as how I can continue my artistic practice due to the circumstances. I have done this mainly through writing and photo journaling, doing so in a way that comes most fluidly. Right now, people are forced to take a pause, to stop thinking about what they are going to do next year, and instead, focus on the now, taking each day as it comes. There is a wisdom in this and it allows time for the more important things in life such as family and health but also grants an appreciation for the smaller things in life. This is what some of my images attempt to present. Documenting the confusing, isolating times we are living in right now, but trying to see the bright side whilst noticing and acknowledging things I probably wouldn’t have otherwise.