Ella Etheridge
Ella Etheridge (b. 1993, Suffolk) is an artist born in East Anglia, currently living and working in Bournemouth. Through drawing and sculpture Etheridge explores themes of animal, nature and history. Her practice is fed through a constant interest in the unnatural and post human developed from an interest in taxidermy and human history. Etheridge’s work has a constant theme of history, she has studied Roman, Greek and English cultures, using particular themes and imitating them. For example recreating Greek mythology by creating anatomical drawings of mythical creatures (2013). This work was exhibited in the Museum of Design in Plastics (UK) in 2013 in the group exhibition ‘Wunderkammer’. Etheridge also exhibited in the group show ‘RE-LEASE’ (2014) where she created an installation piece based on the history of Boscombe, where the exhibition took place. Etheridge inserted acetate images taken from historical photographs of the town behind the glass of the pocket watch. Above the piece a quote or phrase regarding time or time gone was placed for the viewer to ponder upon. Etheridge was playing with the notion of time and aimed to highlight fond ‘memories’ of the towns past, when it was a popular seaside destination. Still involved with themes of history, Etheridge is currently exploring ideas from various mythologies and merging them with other themes including evolution and cloning to create a range of curious hybrid creatures. These works merge man, animal and nature and are realised in sculpture, often full human scale. She uses cast objects, fabricated armatures, found natural materials which are combined with plaster and straw to create the hybrids that can hold a range of ideas including fairy-tales, totems, myth and science. The figures, which fuse ancient and contemporary references, do not have a visible back-story and are therefore there for the viewer to encounter on their own terms and to read into what they wish. Etheridge currently aims to create scenes of hybrid creatures that encompass a range of themes that the viewer can read into, the creatures are quite ambiguous and without one particular meaning, therefore the viewer can project their own ideas onto the sculptures and become 'involved' with the scene she is creating. She has found that using blind drawings as a base for the sculptures means that she is able to be less illustrative and let her imagination drive the work. Furthermore Etheridge tries not to create a specific image on paper or in her head of what the sculpture is going to look like, but rather start building the sculpture and letting it naturally develop as if it were a living creature that she was creating.
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