Sophie cox

The series of works titled ‘Desks of Fabric’ are charcoal rubbings on material sourced from the local area. The works take their patterning from the imprint of marks made on school desks from Scone Grammar School. These marks have been reworked in thread by current students at the school under the guidance of artist Sophie Cox. The desks bear the mark of the education process for past students. The artworks now bear both a record of these marks and the new ones sewn by current students. Through this, notions of time are explored, as well as the place of education. As the students have learnt to embroider in the process of making these works, their education has been both recorded and enhanced by their participation in the artistic process. 

Charcoal has been used for art for millennia, and this connects further to the notions of history and the passing of time inherent in the work. It also connects to the school desks in how charcoal is formed often through the burning of wood. Charcoal has also been used in the work for aesthetic purposes, to create a contrast between the pale fabric, and the bold black marks.

In this work, Cox aims for viewers to consider education as a whole, and its political and social ramifications. She hopes people will consider the importance of all forms of education and their own personal experiences with it.

 The Artist Acknowledges Arts Upper Hunter, The THTN project, and the funding body, The Regional Arts Fund (RAF) in this project