Artist Statement

Upon approaching my installation entitled “Ouch” members of the audience are faced with a dozen young girls who hang in suspended animation. Navigating the space will be impossible without impacting the figures, however with the slightest contact I each touch sensitive figure exclaims “OUCH”. The life size figures in “OUCH” are cast in flexible poly-eurathane foam from a sculpted original. They are covered in a cloth and rubber skin with woollen hair. Each figure is equipped with a sensitive switch, which when the girl is moved from her hanging axis, triggers a chip to play a voice recording through the speaker in her chest.

• Tamara Stone, Canada. I am interested in human learning, processing and understanding of information as affected by emotion, self-awareness and personal accountability. How are they affected by socialization? How can i convey my own experience of learning and what processes can I initiate in an audience? In the last few years, intrigued by the contrast between the elastic and unpredictable nature of the individual mind and the structured way in which machines “learn”, process and respond I have come to focus on emerging media and their evolving roles in art making in an increasingly techno-centric society. I now work in a combination of traditional and new media. The figurative nature of my pieces provides physical and historical context while mechanical and computerized elements are intended to engage and challenge the viewer in unique ways.

Supported by the Canada Council.