ARTIST STATEMENT

    The theme of play is prevalent throughout Winnicott’s practice, exploring the haptic, sensorial and therapeutic dynamic that playing can bring and the ways the practice of play can enter the gallery space, debating if it is a natural, undirected enjoyment or is affected to some degree by the institution of the white cube. A comedic, sensorial dialogue of working and interacting with materials is an important part of Winnicott’s practice in understanding the role of practical play and the active participant as opposed to the passive viewer.  In exploring these ideas, Winnicott uses textile-based materials within sculpture through sewing with various fabrics and stuffing to create squishy forms that are often based on the natural or geometric. The work mainly consists of pastel and bright coloured materials to connote a sense of child-like objects and environment.  These sculptures are transitional and malleable where they can be forms of comfort and manipulated by the viewer’s perception and tactile dynamics, furthermore, are utilised to produce environments akin to soft play areas or sensory rooms. The otherworldly spaces are intended for people to play, explore and ultimately experience through their own phenomenology.  During recent times, Winnicott has explored animation and film work as a way of manipulating colourful forms in a virtual presence, moreover, using physical sculptures in conjunction with moving image to create a multi-sensory environment.