Caroline Yorke

Me in School 2022

entrance view. lighting fixture, cardboard, craft paint, beetroot, etc

Me in School 2022

floor view. plastic, floor sweepings, flowers, coins, twine, craft paint, etc.

Me in School 2022

finger knit textile detail. Yarn, twine, straw, tape, etc.

Me in School 2022

right wall view 1. packing peanuts, twigs, pom poms, frames, hydrangeas, pipe cleaners, craft paint, etc.

Me in School 2022

right wall view 2. wine holder, plastic, paper plate, yarn, craft paint, etc.

Me in School 2022

right wall detail 1. Tennis ball, plastic bottle, egg cartoon, etc.

Me in School 2022

front wall view. Pastel, paper, craft paint, etc.

Artist Statement

I have spent this semester making a sculptural installation in my studio, using a wide assortment
of found objects such as twigs, cardboard, plastic, crab shells, craft paint, baking pans, and
anything else convenient. This work is a response to the fact that I am now graduating from
university after 18 years in school.

I have been reflecting on this era spent in classrooms. Most memorable is the time and effort I
commit to the doodles in my notebook. From 1st grade onward, I have always been an intensive
serial doodler, drawing every class for hours daily. Like an itch that needs to be scratched, in a
classroom, I need to be doodling. I believe this phenomenon is a reaction to the academic space
itself, which is committed to its own processes such as hierarchical student-teacher relationships. In my notebook, these images I repeat of veins, roots and organic ‘blobby’ forms, have been my
lifeline for 18 years. Many times, I have carried around a single piece of paper or ‘doodle sheet’
to doodle on layer by layer for weeks until I lost it in the back of my locker.

This year, I am given my 9×9 white cube studio space to work within. Unwilling to sacrifice
anything anymore for the sake of academia, I commit myself to taking pleasure in making in this
space. I asked: What will happen if I follow all of my weird instincts, in this space, in this
moment? And, over time, I realize this space is my first three dimensional doodle sheet. I am
half-consciously creating veins and blobby organic shapes with old coffee cups and packing
peanuts. As I am still in the academic setting, what comes most naturally is doodling by lazily
and intuitively arranging shapes, while my mind drifts. And because this is my first three
dimensional doodle sheet, I am creating three dimensional doodles. While doing this, I use found
materials because they are most convenient, and therefore, follow in the resourceful spirit of
doodling with what I have on hand. Over the course of this semester, I add more and more
doodles to this space, building over time to a maximalist and very personal environment that I
invite other people to walk through.