About Tactility Studio

Hello! I'm visual artist Carrie Dickason, currently based in Cerrillos, NM.

 

Tactility Studio is a branch of my broader studio practice investigating materiality and the relationships between the manufactured world and the handmade. A main aspect of these investigations involves laborious sculptures and suspended installations that are viewed in galleries and museums. While these large-scale projects have been underway since the mid-90’s, they generally don’t include sellable components. (please see my website for examples and more information regarding previous exhibits and forthcoming events) 

 

Since the beginning of the Covid-19 global pandemic, I’ve been brainstorming new ways to generate income and share smaller, mailable versions of my work with the public. For me the pandemic struck in the midst of relocation, while I was temporarily staying in an AirBnB. And though I remain in New Mexico, most of my studio is still in storage in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Consequently, this annex-site currently includes artifacts of work stemming from the past. 

 

The current categories, To Wear, To Hold, To Gaze, contain projects that haven't been included in my fine art oeu·vre. The prices listed here consider individuals who would like to collect small one-of-a-kind objects, outside brick and mortar walls, where the artist generally retains 50% of the listed sale price.

Thoughts on making... 

How often do we think about the objects we touch and the lives of the people who made them? Our clothing, cell phones, computers... So many of the items that we purchase have been assembled by under-compensated, invisible hands, from another part of the world. Do we ever consider the energy and labor required for our easy consumption and the long-term human and environmental impact on such purchases?

 

Working in Detroit, for years in interior luxury automotive restoration, the standards of perfection were high. As I found myself hand-lacing Porsche steering wheels and door handles, I thought about the relationship of this precise handwork and the irony that so much of the labor invested by myself and fellow craftsmen (they were mostly men) remains invisible, as the parts are assembled into the cars… Even more perplexing, the stitches on hand-laced door handles may be felt, but not seen, once they are attached to the door. The irony continues to confound me. 

 

My aesthetic results from years of personal experience and contemplation about labor, value and sustainability. It emerges from playful investigations and material explorations. As with my larger sculptural projects, I collect materials from my daily life and re-imagine them into new form. I make a conscious choice to communicate that these items were made by a human- not a machine. 

 

I hope that you enjoy the layers of Tactility Studio, and am very grateful for your support, whether through purchase or sharing with your like-minded community! Please don't hesitate to reach out and say hello. I'd love to hear from you!