BSL: Circular Discourse

Exhibited at Shape: In Circles at the Nunnery Gallery in 2019

See the work under Series, CODA, British Sign Language from the menu, and on Instagram @eclaircallow

Text from the exhibition catalogue:

This is the artist signing to her mother. As a CODA (a Child of a Deaf Adult) she occupies the space between the deaf and hearing worlds. For many CODAs, sign language is their first language.

The drawing depicts a conversation by focusing on facial expressions and hand shapes. Precise and purposeful, these form the grammar of a language born out of usage, rather than transliteration (it is not a translation of English, but evolved organically from communication). However, in being linear and monochromatic, the work shows an affinity with the written word.

The artist’s core interest in human design (from maps to make-up) and how it relates to the body refers back to this experience.