"I am consumed by the construction and performance of identity.
I create multiples of generic articulated paper or textile sculpture figures, which I then transform into distinct personalities.
Each piece begins with a photographic image of my face. I do not consider the work to be a collection of self-portraits but rather a series of roles in which I’ve been cast. These roles transgress historical timelines and boundaries (gender, species, geography) to critique contemporary social and political issues.
Twenty-inch-tall textile figures are created using a combination of labor-intensive hand and machine sewing. Detailed, miniature accessories (wigs, clothing, and furniture) are obsessively crafted by myself and are made from re-purposed materials. Each figure requires 50-80 hours to complete. In 2019, I began constructing highly detailed, mixed media dioramas for the figures to inhabit. These elaborate environments take hundreds of hours to complete. In 2022, I began creating immersive, room-sized installations featuring hundreds of ten-inch-tall figures; uncanny communities that act out comical yet poignant narratives inspired by current politics, urban decay, pandemics, and the demise of ecology and human rights.
Figurative works on paper are equally as meticulous. Incorporating ink, watercolor, collage, and often text, the characters occasionally break beyond the two-dimensional surface, emerging as articulated figures that come to life as kinetic paper puppets starring in short videos and stop-motion animations. Their colorful, paper-doll appearance softens the sharp edges of their no-holds-barred critique of the human condition.
At 1:8 to 1:4 human scale the intimate size and intricate detail of the works coax viewers in for a closer look, where sinister, satirical narratives lurk under a veneer of whimsy. "
-Jody MacDonald