Anousha Payne (b. 1991)  lives and works in London and graduated from Camberwell College of Arts with a BFA in 2014Anousha Payne’s work explores the human pursuit of spirituality in object form, as a form of cultural expression that is distinct from religious symbolism. Through the process of psychic automatism and free-association, she is interested in whether it is possible to imbue spirituality into an object, and in the material qualities of religious or spiritual objects; how the material qualities of a work impact our experience of them, and the processes by which they are made inform them. Alongside this she is interested in the impact of domestic settings on our mental and spiritual well-being, exploring this through subverted and animistic domestic furniture. 

 

Another important element to her work is storytelling through simple gestures and expressions, reflecting on human interaction and communication; this is expressed through visual explorations of Tamil mythology and folklore, creating a personal narrative, and blurring the boundaries between personal experience, fiction and myth. The deployment of bharathantyam hand gestures are used of a way of connecting with cultural heritage, as well as being used for their known symbolic meaning. 

 

Often deploying a reptile skin, her ceramics are intended as hybrid objects, a reminder of the fluidity and shared qualities between humans, animals, the natural world and inanimate objects, questioning material hierarchies and values. This process seeks to build an aesthetic dialogue and personal visual language as a meditative interaction.

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Recent exhibitions include and here she dwells a solo exhibition at Indigo + Madder, Our ashes make great fertiliser at Public Gallery, Vessels at Island Gallery in Brussels,  and an online presentation Eating a peach with Cooke Latham. Upcoming shows include a duo show with Anna Perach upcoming with Cooke Latham gallery and group shows at Arusha Gallery, and Changing Room Gallery.

 

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