A Body on the Ground:
an interview with Kedisha Coakley
Here is an extract from a piece for Corridor8 supported by Yorkshire Sculpture Park.
[SA] You stated that you wanted to ‘challenge colonial constructs’ in your work at Yorkshire Sculpture Park (YSP) and that you feel it is a safe space to allow interpretation within the surroundings without interference. Do you prefer this to the ‘white cube’ gallery?
[KC] I wouldn’t say I have a preference. As yet, I’m not far enough into my career to say I’ve had enough experiences in gallery spaces. I think it’s more about what those white walls represent and who can control going into those spaces. I do enjoy the aspect of allowing work to sit in a space where there are no constructs. The pieces are set into the environment and left to find their own narrative: I think there’s real freedom and real joy in that. Even before I was studying, YSP was the first place I visited when I came to Sheffield. The sense of calm and the sense of connection is something I’d never felt before. I’d visited galleries from when I was very young, but there was something else at play.
Kedisha Coakley self-titled exhibition will take place at Yorkshire Sculpture Park from 31 July to 31 October 2021.
The full article can be viewed on the Corridor8 website.
https://corridor8.co.uk/article/a-body-on-the-ground-an-interview-with-kedisha-coakley/