Morning Light, 2020, series of 5 emulsion monotypes. 20 x 12cm each (image size: 8 x 7 cm). Images courtesy of the artist. 

Isabella Feek

Curtains have long provided a sense of protection, safety and security - blocking out light and curious, peering eyes from seeing what's inside. The way the curtain shifts and moves, manipulating light and visibility, is a central aspect of my work. The bedroom is a place of safety and security for myself. During isolation, I have been using my curtains to alter light and shadows to provide protection, whilst also being more inviting to the outside.

As a printmaker who primarily makes zinc plate etchings, the closure of studios due to COVID-19 has temporarily halted my traditional printmaking studies and practice. Due to this unavailability of etching facilities, I have explored a variant of printmaking methodologies through polaroid film transfers - creating a monotype series captured with vintage polaroid 600 film, then performing an emulsion transfer. Taken during the mornings, I captured the light peeking through my curtains; an insight into daily morning ritual and the role morning light played in my day to day life during the coronavirus pandemic. These monotypes break down the morning light emitted by the sun, and translate the colours as an abstract depiction of sunrise and textile, highlighting the beauty in the regular and the mundane.

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Isabella Feek is an emerging artist currently completing a Bachelor of Fine Arts at UNSW Art & Design, majoring in Printmaking, and SPI (Sculpture, Performance, Installation). A prevalent focus in Feek’s artistic practice is fabric and its materiality, in particular bedroom curtains. In 2019, Feek exhibited in the Eden Gardens Outdoor Sculpture Show. She was also selected as a Kudos Gallery White Cube volunteer (2019), and awarded a New Colombo Plan Scholarship (2020) to study cultural textiles in West Bengal, India.