Stephanie Tanney
My work revolves around the connection between objects and humankind. I focus on social and political themes addressing global issues specific to the human condition. I create sculptural installations that reflect the viewers' memories and evoke familiarity, inviting them to fill in the blanks and build a personal connection. My latest work explores questions of identity. Language lost in translation and the stranger. Looking at narratives of home, displacement and the shifting or dissolving boundaries that impact us as a society. I am intrigued with the spaces in between, the void, cracks and empty spaces. There seems to be a gap between people, a disconnection with the stranger. It’s this gap, space in between people that interests me.
My process takes a sculptural form through the exploration of everyday and found objects that have no real intrinsic meaning. I manipulate their structures, capturing a sense of something familiar yet maintaining a sense of ambiguity, rendering something both recognisable and uncertain. An abstraction of a thoughtless act of being.
I often use furniture to create a surreal space, a fragmented entity. A metamorphosis. This involves taking something that you connect with on a daily basis but giving it an uncanny suggestion, leasing it a new life.
Biography:
Stephanie Tanney (b1979) Olympia Washington, USA, Is a sculptural artist
based in Belfast Northern Ireland. She has a first class honours degree in Contemporary Applied art and a Master in Fine Art from the Ulster University.
She uses a wide range of mediums from found objects, furniture, ceramics and textiles. She has exhibited in group exhibitions across Belfast: (2016) ‘Collective Memories’ UUSU Arts and Culture Society Exhibition, Engine Rooms Gallery, Belfast. (2017) ‘Second’ Pop up Art Exhibition, Cotton Court and Smithfield Market, Belfast. (2018) End of year show, Ceramics, Ulster University, Belfast. (2018) RUA annual exhibition, Ulster Museum, Belfast. (2018) Vault Studios, group exhibition. (2019) ‘Normal Position, Show Position’, Platform Arts, Belfast. (2020) ‘Keep Dry’, Catalyst Arts, Belfast. (2020) ‘MFA Take Over (Performance) Mac, Belfast. (2020) ‘MFA Graduate show’ The Mac, Belfast
Stephtanney@gmail.com
stephtanney.com
instagram.com/steph_tanneyfineart
