| Description | Coutts exhibited 3 newly commissioned photographs in 'Love, Labour and Loss' curated by Clive Adams in response to the Foot and Mouth crisis of 2001. The exhibition included work by historical and contemporary artists and a publication with five illustrated essays and foreword by Melvyn Bragg (ISBN 0907852106). Clive Adams' essay illustrated Coutts's work and appraised her contribution to the exhibition theme.
Coutts's photographs comprised found photographs of farm animals digitally combined with images of human eyes, exploring the cultural, psychological and mythical histories of human perspectives on animals. This developed from research into representations of human/animal hybridity in classical mythology, and their contemporary manifestations, for example in the field of biogenetic engineering.
The exhibition was accompanied by talks and an education programme bringing together speakers from CIWF (Compassion in World Farming), CCANW (Centre for Contemporary Art in the Natural World) and members of parliament from the Department of the Environment and Rural Affairs.
Selected reviews include:
‘Myth and Misery on the Farm', R. Campbell-Johnston, The Times, 31.07.02, ‘All Perfectly Beastly', H. Pickles, The Times, 10.08.02. ‘Place Oddities', J. Jones, The Guardian, 10.07.02.Today Programme, BBC Radio 4, 4.08.02. ‘Arcadia is Worth Dying' For, J. McEwen, The Sunday Telegraph, 4.08.02.
Following Love , Labour and Loss Coutts's work was selected for the exhibition After Dolly at the ICA, London in 2004 (CIWF bursary and award), The Human Zoo at The Hatton Gallery, Newcastle, and Animality, Blue Oyster Gallery, Dunedin, New Zealand. She was also commissioned to make a large-scale public work in Haldon Woods, Devon for CCANW and the Forestry Commission in Sept 2006. |
|---|