Claire Hurley: Inhabiting Sculptural Forms of the Land

This latest conversation for Between the Art is with interdisciplinary artist and designer Claire Hurley.

Claire is an Irish artist, based mostly in the south west of Ireland. Her degree in Archaeology reflects her fascination with ancient culture and heritage: how we can take inspiration from the past and reinterpret it for our very different world today. Claire has studied, worked and qualified in many different areas of practice over the years, including archaeology, fashion design, craft, floral design, millinery, which somehow all combine into the work she is doing now, making wearable sculptures with recycled and/or foraged plant materials. Claire is currently doing a postgraduate diploma in Art and Ecology with the National College of Art and Design to further ground into the conceptual and even spiritual nature of her work. She has also been travelling to different artist residencies over the last year.

The first time I encountered Claire's work, I was immediately fascinated by the relationship between the human form, sculpture and land. In this conversation, Claire shares more about this interrelationship and how the gathering of materials is an important part of its creation.

Where do you work? What makes this place important for your creative process?

I don't currently have a workspace, which I really miss. I loved my studio where it was such a nourishing and creative space to work in, albeit always messy and overcrowded with too many projects on the go! Stepping into the space always got me in the zone and on some days, even if I didn't feel like working on something, just sitting in the studio and reading or sketching felt like contributing to a larger creative experience.

Now, I’m moving around a lot, travelling to different artist residencies as a creative solution to how the housing crisis is impacting me here in Ireland, in that affordable housing and studio spaces are extremely limited. I’m essentially being a nomad at the moment. I might have a different studio every couple months, and some months without any space to work. This is definitely impacting my practice, in that I will create intensively and produce a lot when I have a space, but when I don’t, I feel constricted and find it hard to make work. Even when I work outside, which I do a lot as much of my materials are foraged from my surroundings, just having a place that you can safely leave the work in process is important; as is the space to experiment and explore within the process, which is facilitated by a safe space to work.

"How I connect with the spirit or sense of place is what I get really excited about. I love how this changes if I’m in a different country or landscape and encountering different qualities of the place."

How would you describe your creative process? Do you use certain mediums/techniques to develop your creative ideas?

I might begin the process by noticing or contemplating what is ‘up’ in me: what I’m feeling or thinking about a lot; or what I’m drawn to in my surroundings, and what I feel wants to be expressed or worked out. I gather my materials in the surrounding environment, including found objects that may otherwise be in landfill. This is a massive part of my creative process as it informs and shapes the work into a more cohesive, solid idea by the specific materials I choose to work with, creating new pieces with the intention to provoke an emotional response. I allow the materials to speak to me and guide my process and shape the work.

I do some rough sketches of what I want to make but don’t usually stick to these very rigidly. Often I will fill a sketchbook with rough quick sketches expressing a feeling, and to give a shape to that feeling or idea, and not look back on them again during the making process. I’m always surprised when I look back over my sketchbook and see that I have actually brought those sketches to life without really attempting to. It's like my hands take over once the seed has been planted in my mind.

Do you have any rituals that help with this process of creating work?

Definitely connecting into whatever place I am in and what season it is helps me to feel inspired and curious about what is different or special about this place in time, and how I could bring that particular energy or ‘spirit’ into my work. I walk a lot and this in a way is a ritual as it allows me to connect with the place. I pick up bits and pieces like twigs and branches, shells and stones, which further inspire me. The sketching process I mentioned above is also an important step for me, by getting a visual concept out of my head and onto paper.

What are you working on at the moment?

I have been taking a little time out from production as I have had a very busy year! Also I don't have a workspace at the moment, which is a challenge. I have been concentrating on ‘refilling the well’ of inspiration and critical thinking, and evaluating my work as I move forward. The work will start up again in the next couple of weeks as I have a residency coming up, and so I’m very excited to be making work again soon!

What does “sense of place” mean to you? Is this concept present in your work?

Sense of place is definitely important to me. It’s really what underlies so much of my work, and influences how I express myself. I work with the things I find around me and this is what gives me my immediate inspiration. Even when I have a concept in mind, it’s the influence of the place and the materials and plants growing there that give form to the work and moves it in a particular direction. I’m absolutely inspired by my surroundings and where I am in the moment is so important to me. How I connect with the spirit or sense of place is what I get really excited about. I love how this changes if I’m in a different country or landscape and encountering different qualities of the place.

"My work is about the symbiotic relationship between humans and the Earth. The health of the Earth is so vital to our survival, and beyond that, absolutely worthy and incredible in its own right."

Do you have a message that you hope to give to the world through your work?

I think my practice works on two main levels. Firstly, I’m often trying to express some feeling, a personal limitation or a frustration perhaps, and I use the work to help me give shape to that. By inhabiting the sculpture, it also allows me to embody the concept which helps me process and move through it. So on one level it is quite personal and seeking healing and wholeness of self. But the greater picture for me, and ultimately where the greatest healing lies, is with the connection to the earth and this is what I try to express with my work. Using natural materials helps with this of course. Yet it’s also about the symbiotic relationship between humans and the Earth and how the health of the Earth is so vital to our survival, and beyond that, absolutely worthy and incredible in its own right. I would hope to ignite some spark of delight in viewers, some way of looking at my work so that they might interact a little differently, creatively and respectfully with plant materials, landscapes, and the environment, and that it may spark a smile.

Claire's Book List:

I love books – I’m an absolute book addict! However, I’m quite a slow reader and, as I tend to try to read about six books at the same time, it takes me ages to finish one!

1. Land and Environmental Art by Jeffrey Kastner

Whilst doing my Art and Ecology postgrad, I’m reading up on connections between my own work and how other artists approach the subject matter and explore ecology with their practice. I’m enjoying this book.

2.The World According to Colour: A Cultural History by James Fox

This is an interesting approach to our experience and relationship with colour, a subject I am fascinated with.

3. Listen to the Lank Speak: A Journey into the Wisdom of what Lies beneath Us by Manchan Magan

I dip in and out of this book. An Irish writer, Magan is such a wonderful fountain of knowledge and lore. His work is vital in any further contemplation of Irish landscape, culture, language and stories, and how these are all so beautifully interwoven in the Irish culture. His work is doing a great part in keeping that knowledge and well of wisdom alive.

To see more of Claire's work, visit her website www.clairehurley.com and Instagram @clairehurley.artdesign

Images 1, 5: Becca Geden

Images 2, 3: Manuel Vason

Image 4: Artist's Own