university of florida > school of art+art history

gradphotoseminar >2006

Joy_Drury_Cox

artist : statement


Questions of appropriation and abstraction are central to my work. My latest project called “Applications” is composed of graphite drawings of applications for employment for low wage hourly jobs. The lines and boxes of each application for employment were measured and redrawn as they appear on the form. These drawings require presence and quiet, both in the making and viewing, which in turn, opens up space for thought. Prior to and during the making of these drawings, I was thinking a great deal about time and how is measured, experienced, and valued. This has led me to consider notions of labor, both artistic and institutionalized. In both product and production, the question of “form” seems crucial. Often the most quiet, unobtrusive forms have the most powerful influence on everyday life. I am interested in questioning our culture’s expectations of artistic labor versus industrialized labor. While originality is praised, if not at least expected in one group, it is generally discouraged or dismissed in other arenas. For me, applications for employment highlight a moment when the individual first postures to industry expectations, while not necessarily being accepted or denied. The “spaces” of the form become a place for the individual to construct him or herself for another entity. My work is an interrogation into the less visible structures of everyday life. I feel it is important to make connections between everyday life and artistic practice as a means to understand both in new ways.

 

Joy Drury Cox
February 2006

Application.graphite on paper. Joy Drury Cox. 2006