Judith Scott The urge to make associations with...

Judith Scott

The urge to make associations with [Judith Scott’s work] is almost unavoidable. Just for starters, they are bundled, wrapped, enfolded, sheltered, clothed, enveloped, and bandaged. They are also tough: raw, knotted, controlled. They are made slowly with accretions of “found” materials wrapped in place, much as a spider encases a fly in her web.

These found materials, to put it bluntly, are mostly stolen, or “appropriated,” to use proper art-speak. But art-speak is inappropriate for discussing Scott’s work. We can’t begin to know what is going on inside her, for not only is she profoundly deaf, she doesn’t speak, and she is also developmentally disabled, having been born with Down’s syndrome.

She [made] these forms for less than 18 years, but her “body of work” - certainly an appropriate term - is immense. It is large enough for a touring solo exhibition of her work; a handsome book/catalogue about her and her work, written by John MacGregor; and a delightful video that focuses on her, The Creative Growth Art Center in Oakland, California, where she worked, and her twin sister, Joyce Scott.*

* Smith, Barbara Lee (2001, March/April). Judith Scoth: Finding a voice. Fiberarts: contemporary textile art and craft, pp.36-39.

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c h l o r o p h y l l a *

16 notes