Rhizomatic root system
Plinth, curated by Misc Objet as part of Craft’s Craft Contemporary 2023.
The agency of a plinth is contested territory: does the base create the sculpture, or the sculpture the base? On one hand the plinth is a physical and conceptual null space; a void signifier only given meaning by the signified art. On the other, the plinth anchors a sculpture, grounding it and serving as a bridge between the material world and a more esoteric realm. The plain white plinth exerts its agency by influencing human behaviour, manipulating audiences to regard rather than touch. Rhizomatic Root System deploys its agency in the reverse, inviting physical contact. While the conventional plinth is static, this plinth is a structure that reaches and evolves, refusing to be merely supportive material.