Katherine Jane Rodge

BA Fine Art and Art History

The aim of this project is to demonstrate the versatility and creative potential of nature. I have taken a very common natural element, salt, and combined it with artistic materials to demonstrate how nature, in partnership with artistic materials and artistic influence, can create new and wonderful natural formations that haven’t been seen before. In nature, I experience a sense of life and nurture from the natural elements that surround me and I’m continually amazed by the sense of uninhibited life and growth that nature shows me. In this project, I wanted to demonstrate a sense of that same feeling by showing how salts, and artistic materials, could make specimens that look like crystals, bacterial growths in a Petri dish, natural weather and environmental formations and even surfaces of different planets. The fact that these specimens resemble such large spectacles from something so small, and very common to us, is representative of just how limitless the creation of nature can be.

(top left)
Mineral Kaolinite , C25H28N6O7 and MgSO4 with (C2H40)X
Black gesso primer with salt, clay, coffee and glue on 200lb paper

(bottom left)
Mineral Kaolinite, SiO4 and NaCl + C with (C2H4O)X
Black gesso primer with clay, coffee, salt and glue on 300lb paper

(top middle)
(MgClKNaCaCl)Cl with (C4H4O)X
Black gesso primer with salt and glue on 300gsm paper

(bottom middle)
NaCl + S and (C2H4O)X
Black gesso primer with salt and glue on high quality printer paper

(top right)
NaCl + C with 5 chlor- 2 methyl- 2H isothiazol- 3 On + 2 methyl- 2H isothiazol- 3 On
Black gesso primer with salt and varnish on 300gsm paper

(bottom right)
C25H28N607 and NaCl with (C2H40)X
Black gesso primer with salt, coffee and glue on 300gsm paper

10.16 x 10.16 cm each

(top left)
Moroccan clay with South African caviar salt and PVA glue
Black gesso primer with clay, salt and glue on 300gsm paper

(bottom left)
South African caviar salt with PVA glue
Black gesso primer with salt and glue on high quality printer paper

(top middle)
Moroccan clay, Nicaraguan coffee and Epsom salt with PVA glue
Black gesso primer with salt, coffee, clay and glue on 640gsm paper

(bottom middle)
Nicaraguan coffee with Epsom salt and PVA glue
Black gesso primer with coffee, salt and glue on 300gsm paper

(top right)
Indian Kala salt with PVA glue
Black gesso primer with salt and glue on 600gsm paper

(bottom right)
Quartz Substrate with Epsom salt and PVA glue
Black gesso primer with substrate, salt and glue on 300gsm paper

10.16 x 10.16 cm each

(top left)
Epsom with Varnish
Black gesso primer with salt and varnish on 600gsm paper

(bottom left)
Rose with Hairspray
Black gesso primer with salt and hairspray on 300gsm paper

(top middle)
Flake with Varnish Spray
Black gesso primer with salt and varnish on primed canvas board

(bottom middle)
Epsom with Varnish Spray
Black gesso primer with salt and varnish on 300gsm paper

(top right)
Epsom with Varnish Spray
Medium and Support
Black gesso primer with salt and varnish on primed canvas board

(bottom right)
Sea with Varnish
Black gesso primer with salt and varnish on 300gsm paper

10.16 x 10.16 cm each

(top left)
C25H28N607 and NaCl with (C2H40)X
Black gesso primer with salt, coffee and glue on 300gsm paper

(bottom left)
(Magnesium, Potassium, Sodium, Calcium)Chloride with Coffee extract and Polyvinyl Alcohol
Black gesso primer with salt, coffee and glue on 300gsm paper

(top middle)
Mineral Kaolinite, Sodium Chloride with Polyvinyl Alcohol
Black gesso primer with clay, salt and glue on 300gsm paper

(bottom middle)
Sodium Chloride + Potassium, Magnesium and Calcium with Polyvinyl Alcohol
Black gesso primer, salt and glue on 300gsm paper

(top right)
Magnesium Sulphate, Sodium Chloride and Polyvinyl Alcohol
Black gesso primer, salt and glue on primed canvas

(bottom right)
Magnesium Sulphate and Polyvinyl Alcohol
Black gesso primer with salt and glue on 600gsm paper

10.16 x 10.16 cm each