Judith Alder – Finding Her Way
Part 1
A copse of paper trees greets me as I enter the Blue Monkey Studio where artist Judith Alder works in Eastbourne. These trees are made from discarded ordnance survey maps, rolled, cut and soaked in woodstain. The trees stand three feet high, each tree stuck to the floor with plasticene. Another group of trees stands proud on the bench. These paper sculptures remind me of my Rupert Bear annuals – at the end of each story was a page of instructions on how to make a folded paper tree or ladder or boat. I want to play now, to cut my own trees. Judith uses these low-tech forms to make a paper landscape. Do they help her see the wood from the trees? She tells me she wants to find a way to present the trees for others to negotiate their own paths through the wood.
A line of string falls from the ceiling and piles into a messy circle on the floor; a paper roll from a cash register hangs down and makes another pile. I see letraset numbers at intervals on the paper strip. These lengths of string and paper measure out Judith’s journey from home to studio.
Judith is engaged in a mapping process. As she travels ‘round the houses’ she collects information and objects along her way and documents her path by slinging her camera over her shoulder and setting the timer to take a picture every minute. In exchange she leaves waymarks such as a pebble, a fircone or an arrow made of sticks along her route.
She is investigating her back garden too. From photos of small sections 12 inches by 6 inches she is making a set of drawings half that size. She has to interpret the picture and use simple lines to denote plants, bricks, stones, features of these tiny landscapes. She is surveying small lands. Is this a way to orientate herself, a way to respond to and express her experience of being in the world? Can we see more too by looking at the work she shows us?
The rest of this article will be posted on Projects Unedited in sections over the next few days. The complete article can be downloaded from: www.roz2.co.uk/news.html The project, Breaking Ground, is a partnership supported by a NAN New Collaborations Bursary (AN – The Artists Information Company). This article is part of the project. And the partners (Judith Alder and, Roz Cran) will develop a joint residency on an allotment. In addition they are collaborating in the organisation of BMPD (Blue Monkey Professional Development for Artists). The first BMPD event took place in June 2007 in Eastbourne where they plan to arrange a year-long programme.
