Gabrielle James

Two Evils Combined 

My project is based on the theme of body, identity and character, with a specific focus on the notion of evil.  In my final pieces, Two Evils Combined, I applied my specialist skills in SFX and Textiles to portray the idea of evil, both physically and mentally. 

I have been inspired to create work that would demonstrate what evil could look like at an extreme point of view. My designs have been inspired by Greg Nicotero, who worked on the post-apocalyptic horror series The Walking Dead (2010-21).  

The sculpture of a zombie devil has been made using a wood and wire armature which has gradually been covered in polymer Super Sculpey clay to create the basic head shape. The texture board, made out of wax-based NSP clay, shows the full details in my sculpture, including the character’s mouth, nose, wounds and skin texture. I used a variety of tools and techniques as I developed the work: to create the texture I used a blow torch to melt the clay so that it was easy to move around; I used the end of a paintbrush to create the texture I wanted; and for the finer details I used specific sculpting tools for precision. 

The photographs displayed have been created to focus on the idea of Anxiety and Paranoia. I have been inspired by photographic artist Claire White, who creates photographic portraits within the theme of mental health.  My series of images portray fear; a girl looking at the camera with hands touching her face, the subject almost unaware of the impending touch; an invisible barrier in front of the subject isolating her and making her trapped and alone. I edited the image with subtle, small details, converting the images to black and white to remove colour and life from the model, brightening her eyes so that they stand out from the darker background and aiming to show the sadness in her eyes.