Boatbound
By Suzie McMurtry
Wool, silk, cotton, linen
29.5” x 13” x 1.5”
2024
Artist Statement: The root of my creative work is a curiosity of the workings of socio-ecological systems, which materializes into explorations of themes like material circularity, climate resilience, personal archiving, and civic engagement. The tools I use in my design work and artistic expression range from clothing construction and oil painting to designing serious games and growing mycelium sculptures.
Artist Bio: Suzie McMurtry (b. 1995) is an interdisciplinary designer, researcher, and artist from the San Francisco Bay Area, where she lives now. In 2017, she received a BA in Studio Art from Colorado College, after which she worked at galleries, at makerspaces, for small sustainable clothing brands, and as a photographer while nurturing an art practice. While living in London 2020-2024, she completed an MA in Material Futures at Central Saint Martins and then worked as a design researcher on a team using human-centered design methods in the government. She has shown work in Colorado, California, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands.
“I made this piece with my hands, while my head swam in thoughts and feelings about my grandfather, shortly after he passed away peacefully at home, at 96. "Boatbound": because he loved to be in a boat on the San Francisco Bay--and was lucky to not be bedbound in his last years. The piece has a sunbleached look (no SPF for him). It’s a pillowy, flag-like wall hanging, made from vintage silk and wool, repurposed cotton and some of his worn out trousers. The shapes and spots of primary colors, revealed by distressed portholes, are meant to hint at a nautical theme and in particular of my grandparents' tea towel, which explains the meanings of different signal flags when at sea. I often engage with my family history in this tactile way, making my own interpretations of what’s hidden, revealed, and normalized within the culture of my family. I love the idea of this piece hanging in a green house - a semi-natural space with amplified elements, cueing amplified senses.”
-Suzie McMurtry, San Francisco, CA.
Boatbound
By Suzie McMurtry
Wool, silk, cotton, linen
29.5” x 13” x 1.5”
2024
Artist Statement: The root of my creative work is a curiosity of the workings of socio-ecological systems, which materializes into explorations of themes like material circularity, climate resilience, personal archiving, and civic engagement. The tools I use in my design work and artistic expression range from clothing construction and oil painting to designing serious games and growing mycelium sculptures.
Artist Bio: Suzie McMurtry (b. 1995) is an interdisciplinary designer, researcher, and artist from the San Francisco Bay Area, where she lives now. In 2017, she received a BA in Studio Art from Colorado College, after which she worked at galleries, at makerspaces, for small sustainable clothing brands, and as a photographer while nurturing an art practice. While living in London 2020-2024, she completed an MA in Material Futures at Central Saint Martins and then worked as a design researcher on a team using human-centered design methods in the government. She has shown work in Colorado, California, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands.
“I made this piece with my hands, while my head swam in thoughts and feelings about my grandfather, shortly after he passed away peacefully at home, at 96. "Boatbound": because he loved to be in a boat on the San Francisco Bay--and was lucky to not be bedbound in his last years. The piece has a sunbleached look (no SPF for him). It’s a pillowy, flag-like wall hanging, made from vintage silk and wool, repurposed cotton and some of his worn out trousers. The shapes and spots of primary colors, revealed by distressed portholes, are meant to hint at a nautical theme and in particular of my grandparents' tea towel, which explains the meanings of different signal flags when at sea. I often engage with my family history in this tactile way, making my own interpretations of what’s hidden, revealed, and normalized within the culture of my family. I love the idea of this piece hanging in a green house - a semi-natural space with amplified elements, cueing amplified senses.”
-Suzie McMurtry, San Francisco, CA.
