Born 1987 In New York – received her Master’s in Painting from the Royal College of Arts, London (2014)
When I think of sculpture my mind automatically goes straight to heavy materials such as clay and plaster. I was drawn to Isabel Yellin’s work as it primarily is the complete opposite of this. Her use of colour and soft materials brings a feminine, childlike, and comforting aura to her work.
Yellin’s work resolves around her emotions and personal life and often relates to her childhood. It focuses on human needs – relationships/love/physicality – linking to use of materials and colours. These themes are interpreted through these alien/creature like shapes. Despite not being alive, you still attach some kind of emotion to them and emphasise with how they are feeling through the way they sit, hang, or are connected to each other.
Texture is obviously very important in Yellin’s work, from the crushed velvet soft shapes, to hanging sheets, to the heavy pillow like shapes made from plaster. Her choice of material is linked to the feeling of the work – for example, the velvet gives off a soft and calming atmosphere, while her use of plaster contrasts against the subject matter of pillows.
Use of material links to her emotional state at the time, linking back to her childhood.
“I am drawn to materials that either immediately trigger an attraction or a repulsion, both personally and universally. Fabric is loaded with connotations and innuendos. … Having this range of fabrics and materials on top of each other pokes at our inherent notions of taste and class that have a direct effect on our experience of the world”.
‘Her work is simultaneously sensory and sensitive.’ ‘The materials are key to Yellin’s practice: they are the medium through which she imbues everyday experiences in art with familiar connotations. The use of textile is particularly crucial in its evocative power. Clothes are something we deal with constantly – they are a second skin, a way we define our personality and present ourselves to others.’
I was drawn to Isabel Yellin firstly because of the aesthetics of her work through her use of colour and textures. I am interested in working more with sewing as I have always been passionate about fashion, and am curious to how I can combine this with my work.
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