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Sewing with sand

CAPUCINE BOURCART IS A COLLECTOR OF ODDITIES, MANY OF WHICH FIND THEIR WAY INTO HER WORK, WRITES ANNEKA FRENCH

‘I CONSIDER MYSELF A GLEANER. I collect things that might be overlooked, discarded or rare and it’s all linked to family. My paternal grandparents worked in the flourishing textile industry in Alsace, France, and my grandfather on my maternal side was a much more modest Vietnamese man who came to replace a French soldier at the Front. One background was much more spoken about within my family than the other but for me they were equal. I guess that’s why I use all kinds of materials to communicate, create unity and embrace diversity,’ explains Capucine Bourcart.

Working with exciting, unusual combinations of materials, including sand, soil, lint and fur on grounds of linen, velvet, denim, canvas or plastic bags, New Yorkbased Capucine Bourcart takes inspiration from a wide range of sources. Aself-taught artist who has recently completed an MFA at the School of Visual Arts in New York, her embroidered, felted and knitted practice always connects to the places and people in her life. Take, for instance, her series BAC À SABLE (2022), made in collaboration with her seven-year-old daughter, Ella. Captivated by the freedom of Ella’s early, pre-figurative drawings, Bourcart has scanned these and made larger versions in which she has stitched in Ella’s lines and loops, retaining the original colour choices and adding new elements of sand to build a graphic, abstract overall piece. These are fringed, with curved edges to amplify a feeling of expression, while the title references childhood play with sand.

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