Trunk marks a maturation in Olive Gill-Hille’s practice from her earlier student work more obviously resembling furniture. There is a clear obtaining of creative liberty here to make objects purely for their evocative value rather than prioritising their relevance to human use—or even requiring that usefulness to facilitate, that is, to give parameters to, making. Her departure from more functional to more figurative forms also opens the work to new readings, new modes of understanding how it relates to human existence. These are embodied objects in that they engage the viewer beyond their status as a user; they transcend the cognitive and begin to tug at the visceral.

Follow this artist