EMMA BULKELEY WILLIAMS

ARTIST STATEMENT

As humans we rely on objects as a form of self-expression, particularly when it comes to our clothing and image, which has serious implications for the planet and all that live on it. My work aims to question sustainability within the fashion industry, being one of the largest global industries and one which has a significant influence on human practices of waste. My sculptures recall items of women’s clothing, made entirely from edible consumables such as rice paper, rice sticks and salt-dough. The fragility and low cost of these materials is reflective of the fast fashion industry and draws awareness to clothing being extremely short-lived. Inspired by The Social Life of Things (1988) by Arjun Appadurai, which explores the complex relationship between the human self and the object, I have visualised this concept by intertwining the human self and the object as singular works in which consumer and consumed become one and the same.