#fingernailclippers

[michaelnannery]

The best place to clip your fingernails is outside--no mess!

Even better, feed your clippings to your garden or compost.  There is a lot of good stuff in there.

[w10w]

Get to Know: Heather Cox

We asked Heather Cox to answer some questions about her artwork, the importance of repetition and the body, and working with West 10th Window. Check out the interview below!

  Art in Buildings: You explain in your artist statement that your work seeks momentary thresholds of curiosity, confusion, and recognition. What significance do these moments hold?

  Heather Cox: I find those quick, transitory moments to be very meaningful. When we are stopped by something compelling there's a microsecond when we are in free fall -- just a moment -- before we can define or label it. It's a really interesting space to explore. It's something that comedians are very skilled at.

AIB: A lot of your work also reformats presentations of figures. (Crush, Nonpareil, Migration, Phalanx, Tissue). What interests you about the body? How does the manipulated body become more potent?

  HC: I'm interested in internal and external structures that support the body. I went through a fairly long "chair" phase which was followed by a deep exploration of bony systems. I also find body fragments to be particularly compelling. There's a simultaneous disconnect and deep recognition that I find endlessly fascinating.

  AIB: How do repetition and scale fit in with your body of work?

HC: Scale and repetition are often tools I use to tear an idea away from its mooring. You can do the same thing by saying any word any word fifty times fast. Let's use the example "boat." Boat boat boat boat boatboatboatboatboatboatboatboatboatboatboat- boatboatboatboat. At a certain point it becomes nonsense. The word and the meaning become uncoupled and the sound feels completely foreign. Boat? What a strange sound. While scale and repetition need to be used judiciously and intelligently, I often find it to be an effective exercise that allows me to see overly familiar materials or ideas in a new way.

  AIB: How did working within the space constraints of West 10th Window influence your art?

HC: We had originally planned to show an entirely different piece until we realized it wouldn't fit in the small door in the back of the window. So that necessitated a quick left turn and we settled on a variation of the Clipper Project. The clippers are very flexible, work well in a variety of environments and it was fun to design  an installation that was only viewable from the waist down.

  AIB: Who are your favorite artists and why? Are there any artists in particular whose work has informed yours?

HC: I adore Ann Hamilton's work. Antony Gormley rocks. Trisha Brown is my shero. Also, in no particular order, I've been influenced by Tom Friedman, Charles Simonds, Lee Bontecou, Alexander Calder, Nina Katchadourian, Anish Kapoor, Mark Morris, Bobby McFerrin, and B.K.S. Iyengar. They are all individuals who use their bodies and minds and materials to fabulous effect. I feel a tremendous amount of gratitude for the commitment they have made to their practice. Their work continues to teach me.

AIB: What’s next for you?

I'm currently sitting in an airport headed down to Jacksonville, Florida to install a big atrium project at the Museum of Contemporary Art. It's another challenging space, but this time rather than a jewel-like window, this is a 40-foot square, open atrium. Rather than using my formidable yoga skills to pretzel myself into the W10W window to install the clippers, I'll be jumping on a genie-lift and installing sculpture four stories off the ground. More information on the MOCA project can be found at http://www.mocajacksonville.org/current/project-atrium-heather-cox

  For more on Heather Cox visit her website at http://coxart.com/

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