Wendy Rhodes
Wendy is a UK based artist whose drawing and printmaking practices reflect her experiences of walking through rural countryside, along coastlines, and becoming immersed in place. The rural countryside is an imperfect vision of a natural environment that has been shaped by human intervention. Paths are chewed and indented by farm machinery, hedges are cut and fences repaired. Nature does its best to wrench back control; rain washes paths to new shapes, fence posts lean to their own tune, and these are the moments that she finds fascinating.
Every piece Wendy creates begins with drawing, exploring the structures and textures of footpaths, bridleways and beaches; tracking seasonal and environmental changes. Her practice is informed by writers and artists such as Tim Ingold and John Virtue, both of whom have experiential practices, exploring walking and wayfaring. A similarly immersive approach enables her to document place in a diarist’s format, drawing attention to details, memories and glimpses that build to a whole
Wendy works with a monochromatic palette in order to focus attention onto surfaces, structural elements and light. The qualities within the materials that she uses and their potential for mark making are important motivating factors. She draws with graphite, water soluble graphite and charcoal, and through these mediums she is able to thoroughly investigate her imagery. The etchings enable her to exploit a rich visual language of texture, line and marks and are created using traditional intaglio methods on copper plates. Most importantly, etching provides Wendy with the opportunity to build layers into my image making; representing an over-layering of time and weathering that is inherent to all places.