The Essence of Rebirth and Resilience

Influenced by the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, Cooke’s artistic process delves into themes of order and chaos, creating artwork that reflects the human experience through layers of expression and diverse inspirations.

1. Briefly describe the work you do.

I currently create sculptural textile wall pieces, installation works, collages and drawings. In my textile pieces, I have discovered many ways of working, primarily with canvas, creating my own visual language. I begin by painting 5’ x 4’ canvases that lay flat on a worktable, often painting both sides with many layers of paint. These canvases are then cut or torn and reconfigured into thick wall relief sculptural works. Sometimes the painted surface faces outwards towards the viewer, sometimes the edges do; the material is alternately torn and frayed, folded, cut with sharp clean edges, distressed, monochromatic, colorful, it is sometimes very smooth and glossy, often highly textured and always layered in some way. I tend to sew multiple parts, often numbering in the hundreds that are then composed and assembled to create a complex whole and mounted on a wood or canvas backing. My installation works address current social, environmental and political issues and are made using a variety of materials and techniques. In these pieces I have focused on concerns that express aspects of our vulnerable, fragile, often violent and complex world. While the works can be perceived as troubling initially, I don’t want the viewer to leave with a sense of despair. I attempt to incorporate humor, possible solutions to our plight and to instill a sense of hope and positivity towards the future of our lives and planet.

2. What or who inspires your work and how has that influenced both your work and your identity as an artist?

There have been so many influences and a myriad of things that have inspired me over the years visually, intellectually, philosophically, culturally and emotionally, I really don’t know where to begin! One of the biggest inspirations, however, for me has been the city of New Orleans itself. Moving here from the Midwest, I was visually in awe and excited by what I saw. In the part of Ohio where I grew up, so much of the environment was newly constructed- the surfaces clean and smooth, showing no age. In New Orleans, by contrast, the weathering of surfaces- the layers upon layers of chipped and peeling paint, the cracked sidewalks, the sun- faded surfaces, the often-times crumbling facades, all spoke to me about a sense of place that held its age and its history right up front for all to see and experience. It seemed somehow more honest to me and that it’s ok to be aware of the effects of the passage of time and the influence of nature both in its beauty and in its destructive power. What so often is seen and spoken of negatively as decay, I would rather view as evidence of life that connects us to the events and people who have passed before us, making their mark on the world. I believe that we need a sense of connectedness that increases our awareness and binds us together as humans who share the planet.

3. Making Art traditionally carry cultural, historical, or personal narratives. How do you incorporate these narratives in your contemporary pieces?

I consider myself to be primarily a process artist, often creating works that are a continuation and evolution, inspired and motivated by the processes and works that came before them. I often feel that I am being led by the material itself and don’t necessarily know, when I begin a work if it will reveal anything in particular or be at all relevant to today’s world. Because of this uncertainty and the labor-intensive way in which I work, I often tell myself that it is perhaps ridiculous to be moving forward with a vision that I don’t know what it ‘means’ and in which I could lose my way. I am urged forward, however by remembering a quote I once read by the mystic 13th century poet Rumi. The quote is: “Start a huge, foolish project, like Noah… it makes absolutely no difference what people think of you.” Like Noah!! HA!! I think this is very funny, and it gives me the permission I need to take the risk and to embrace my own discomfort with not knowing all the answers at the onset.

4. Do you aim for a particular emotional or sensory experience in audience interaction with your pieces, considering that textiles or mixed media artworks can evoke a tactile response?

My goal as a visual artist is to create artworks in which the viewer can become engrossed and engaged for some period of time- works in which there can be experienced a sense of visual exploration, meditation or contemplation. In transitioning from being a ceramic artist into textiles, the tactile and visceral experience continues to be prominent. In some of my recent social and political installation works, the content may evoke an internal questioning and examination of our currently troubled and fragile world. In other works such as my more non- objective sculptural textile wall works, I would like for the viewer to leave feeling perhaps a bit more light-hearted, hopeful and joyful than they were upon entering the space.

5. Given that textiles and mixed media often generate residuals, how do you specifically approach sustainability and work to minimize environmental impact in your artistic practice?

This is a difficult question for me, as it raises issues that concern me greatly but for which I have not found a good solution. My sewn textile works are constructed with acrylic-painted canvas and we all know that acrylic paint is not good for our environment. I have found an ecologically friendly acrylic paint, but it is prohibitively expensive at least for the large- scale work that I do. I could perhaps use dye, but I never achieve the surfaces that I am looking for. I have addressed issues concerning the environment in my installation piece titled “Baggage Claim.”

6. Get inspired!

INSTAGRAM: @a_cookestudio
WEBSITE: anitacooke.com
REPRESENTED BY: Baton Rouge Gallery, Center for Contemporary Art