Agathe Snow Studio visit in Mattituck, Long Island, New York

POLA ESTHER — When I had a pleasure to visit your home and studio in Long Island, you were in the process of creating pieces for “CON-figuration” show at Postmasters Gallery, I’ve learned that this work is a continuation of a series (first featured in the show at Marlborough Contemporary in March). When and how this concept came to you?

AGATHE SNOW — The concept came to me a few months back around the time of the elections, it was finalized in my head in Miami during Art Basel this past December. I had not been there in over 6 years and for the first time I was attending completely clean, eyes wide open and it was extremely interesting and stressful all at once, a real shock to the system and again something else, something I could work through with some help of a stress toy. I always loved the original stress balls of latex and sand.

POLA ESTHER — It looks like “the family” at Postmasters is a little bit lost in the chaos of life, are they giving up?

AGATHE SNOW — The family at Postmasters is certainly not giving up but they are in it for good and it can be heavy, a lot of acrobatics and all the while trying to keep it light for the sake of the kids but there is joy and there is fun and a few steps back and all seems fairly ridiculous so mundane and yet so real.

POLA ESTHER — In gallery description the pieces are made of: metallic blue latex sheeting, stuffing memory foam, foam pad, acrylic fiber stuffing, sand, baking soda, absorbent polymer and anti-microbial agent “base gel found orange agricultural machine parts welded together, found wooden stilts with leather straps, found rusted bits of metal buckets, hard plastic armature for legs (not apparent)…
So much exciting stuff, I enjoyed the story how you developed your relationship with the materials especially main latex and how you discover the recipe got stuffing and put it all together to work for your vision in aesthetic but also practical way! It is challenging to work with something never used before but also very exciting, do you feel that way?

AGATHE SNOW — I relish finding new materials to play with, I always love mixing the leftovers, the abandoned, the rejects, end of the line materials and mix it with some really new, really mass-produced, made in China, chemical, slick and tough, opposites and here stressing each other to the limits, so no real rip. The rusted metal is razor sharp still in places, still so strong as a way to tie it all together and yet the thin latex is stronger it bends and distorts and is stressed and yet it is just as strong. And more to the point, I give myself entirely to the material, the many materials.

POLA ESTHER — How much the location of your studio influences your practice?

AGATHE SNOW — My studio gives me space and place to breath and take a step back close enough to New York to see more clearly. I could not get further away from the city, it still pulls me, directs me. And I get to raise a family, in somewhat normalcy/sanity.

POLA ESTHER — You’ve mentioned the possibility of continuation of this series for the show at the Brandt Foundation in May, are you working on more pieces right now?

AGATHE SNOW — I am going to keep working with these materials for a while since I don’t see figures or stress falling out of favor any time soon… Yes, I’m working on more pieces in this series (now it really is one, after Marlborough and Postmasters, I can really call it a series) for next show at the Brandt Foundation titled “Animal Farm” curated by Sadie Laska. I’m also including wood, a fallen tree, it’s trunk completely gutted on the inside by time, weather, animals bugs. I am sealing it all, de-bugged, de-molded, lacquered and cut in parts, stuffing it with latex animals and latex human parts sticking out through all the many holes/eyes in the trunk, putting the pieces back together with metal and suspending it above the room and all the works down below. I am really looking forward to this show and to inhabit that environment, another delightful stress to the system, another way to learn my limits and to see how far I can stretch.

Text and Photo Pola Esther

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