Headlands Center for the Arts

Artist Statement

My work investigates the ecosystems of community — how we are connected to one another, and how these connections inevitably change over time. I’m fascinated by the way natural forms—like lichen and termite paths—create intricate, hidden systems, constructed by many organisms in unison. How has capitalism disrupted our communal symbiosis? How can we re-learn flexible ways of relating to one another, with capacity for change and inevitable rupture? I construct my work with found and recycled materials, often with personal significance. The objects I find are imbued with the love, care, stains, and mistakes of the people to whom they have belonged before me. Their energy makes its way into my work, allowing me to collaborate with lost loved ones through material. Through multimedia activation, my work asks us to pull ourselves closer to one another with honesty and curiosity.

While at Headlands

Growing up in San Francisco, the rolling foggy hills and thundering shoreline are near and dear to my heart. While at Headlands, I hope to deepen my relationship to home through material collaboration with the coast, and close investigation of the Bay’s social ecosystem. I plan to gather sounds and shapes from the coastline, stories of connections and coincidences, and histories of the landscape, constructing a metaphor for this strange overlapping web that binds us together.

(www.eviehidysmith.bandcamp.com)