Christina Rogers
I make art coats that are unique and reflect the body shape and personality of the wearer.
I am fascinated by the ways that different people experience their inner selves, and the potential for misunderstanding or over-simplification; the differences between the person I know myself to be and the person other people see here in the space where my body is; between a sensation and its expression, between one person’s world view and another and the all the barriers to translation. My work explores these through expressive textiles as metaphors for personality or sensory experience. It is not surprising that recurrent themes for me are masks, skin, clothing as communication, and how things look in the semi-dark.
Largely self-taught, I am inspired by Roseannne Hawksley’s emotional honesty, Caroline Broadheads’ extended relationship with the body, Alexandra Drenth’s hand embroidering freedom, and Alexander McQueen’s exuberant love of the natural world. My background is in psychiatry, which reflects and influences my interest in the uniqueness of individual experience.
I use found objects and used materials where possible.