Brigit Heller’s palpable and enduring fascination with natural form exudes visual potency while paying homage to traditional craftsmanship, ancient cultures, and ethnic influences. Highly regarded for her large-scale metal woven sculptures which are inspired by nature, Heller has recently shifted her focus towards a more intimate size.
Embracing an experimental approach, she employs recycled technology in the form of twisted copper wire extracted from alternator coils and reconstructs the material into woven, harmonious and refined shapes.
In other works, she turns her attention to copper sheet with a deep appreciation of its inherent properties and pliability.
This exhibition revolves around the concept of the archetypal nest, referencing the domestic equivalent of the humble bowl which once contained food and water, and provided substance and solace. The new body of work incorporates materials and diverse craft techniques traditionally associated with domestic and feminine realms, with an unexpected twist, as personally crocheted doilies, delicate in their contours and emblematic of bygone eras are immortalised in cast bronze.
Shimmering, haunted garments constructed of crotched copper quietly evoke nostalgia, revisiting traditional skills such as weaving, forging and crocheting techniques that Heller has inherited from her familial lineage. She reflects on these practices as bringing her ‘… a profound sense of comfort through their familiarity and the rhythmic repetition inherent in their creation’.
As arts writer Ken Scarlett notes: ‘…Heller’s organic compositions in rich earthy tones are life affirming, inviting and moody … each beautiful and mysterious.’
Heller regards her artworks as living, evolving entities, both in their creation as well as their ongoing existence, ‘… I love the degradation of materials and the missing pieces!
They are like remnants of an ancient civilisation.’
Meticulously crafted details fade and resurface in a perpetual cycle, showcasing the natural aging process, while revealing the natural patina. Her creations are imbued with an exquisite fragility and sensual charm, elevating their delicacy and poetry to a sublime level.
Caroline Field Writer and curator
18 February 2024
Lucid 11 copper & florist wire
Twins 1 & Twins 11 copper crochet
Fata Morgana Bronze
Fragile Wood & Copper
A Memory copper knitted
Mending copper
Bloom bronze casting
Voyage copper wire
Feedback Loop
Nocturne copper / wire
Ghost fine copper wire crochet
Nodos copper wire