Sophie cox

 ‘Spineless’ honours the often overlooked, yet splendid creature, which is the invertebrate. Inspired by Ralph Buchsbaum’s book, ‘Animals without Backbones’, craft-based techniques of ceramics and crochet combine with charcoal drawings. Almost disguised amongst them are portraits of public figures described as spineless, drawing into question what this comparison between invertebrates and ‘spineless’ people truly means.

 Almost every one of the invertebrates in the exhibition is ocean-dwelling. The sea, for the artist, is a place of wonderment, and she hopes this is reflected in the artworks. The ocean and her studio are the places she feels most at home, and she finds a sense of joy in uniting them in this exhibition. The gallery, therefore, becomes an extension of this, creating a space of welcome and warmth. If spineless is taken in popular parlance to mean spiritless and weak, Cox’s aim for this exhibition is for it to be full of spirit and strength, just like the invertebrates that have inspired it.