Carl Truscott

As a contemporary conceptual artist whose work has strong theoretical underpinnings, I aim to explore notions of meaning by creating tentative links between art and reality. Much of our interpretation of art is understood in context, and by playing around with this context we can draw lines between disparate facts to construct new narratives. One thing that comes to mind for me when I draw lines between 'Redcar' and 'Environment' is the large rock formations that scar our beach. They are former oyster reefs that are teeming with fossils, millions of long dead animals called Gryphaea, reminding us of the impermanence of life on our planet, and the need to be wary of what could be.

Climate change is an existential threat, and I think arts ability to draw these lines offers us an opportunity for reflection. Therefore, I've created a piece that plays with this idea of drawing lines of meaning. Whether it's a link between these ancient oysters and their modern relatives, whose reefs once offered valuable protection against rising tides, but over-harvesting stripped us of the natural barrier; or the repeating motif of horizontal lines representing the Gryphaea's march through history, which abruptly ends, as it may for us; or even the ambiguity of the text, which reads to me like a cryptic entry into a historical book of the dead; the work plays into these interpretive readings, hopefully igniting discussion about the most important social issue of our time. Includes, 12 painted fossils 1 artists book Layout of piece can be altered according to the space, but preferably as displayed in the image. Relevant previous experience.

Cause of Death

Paper, Charcoal, Ink, Fossils

Artists Book (Conceptual Eulogy), with 12 painted fossils.

Full display, roughly 1m in length

2024

£100