False Flag is proud to present Emilie Gossiaux’s first solo gallery exhibition —  After Image.  

Gossiaux worked predominantly in sculpture following the loss of her sight, experimenting with a wide range of media and scale, as well as performance.  In her diverse, ever-evolving body of work, she demonstrates a rare fearlessness in both technical and conceptual choices. Prior to her near-fatal traffic accident, Gossiaux was a painter: her latest work represents both a return and a progression.  Undeniably personal, these pieces are bold - risky, even - moving her practice in exciting new directions. As she explains, “I use physical memories: how an object fits in the palm of my hand, its weight and texture, or its size in relation to my body."

Over the past year, Gossiaux has carefully collected large textiles.  She selects particular fabrics: absorbent enough to stain and thin enough to allow oil paint to bleed through without completely distorting the image.  Hanging unstretched, the painted cloths read as objects, paintings, or pieces that evade categorization - demonstrating her singular sensitivity towards material.  In Gossiaux's words: "since losing my vision eight years ago, I no longer create using visual references. I rely on memories of colors, shapes, and spaces.” Drawn largely from dreams, the imagery has a sincere immediacy - earnest without being obvious.

Gossiaux begins by laying paper over a soft rubber board.  Using a graphite pencil or ballpoint pen, the tip of the drawing tool presses down into the paper, creating marks which puff up and become tactile.  While her right hand is drawing, her left hand follows the line, feeling what is drawn. As she explains: “Touching is like seeing: my drawings are plans on which I base my sculptures and paintings.”

The paintings in Bleed-Through series are inspired by the material qualities of each fabric: size, color, pattern, and texture.  Gossiaux examines hundreds of candidates before selecting a specific textile. Once a piece is chosen, it is tacked to a moveable section of wall.  Selected drawings are scanned, then printed to fit on particular cloths. Gossiaux maps the composition using physical markings such as tape, templates, or stencils, and meticulously dictates how each paint is mixed (for example: 60% alizarin crimson, 30% rose pink, and 10% titanium white).  The applied paint saturates the fabric, bleeding through onto the backing wall. The visible, tactile evidence of this mark-making process yields the four pieces of the Wall Work series.

After Image will inaugurate False Flag’s new exhibition space at 11-22 44th Rd, Long Island City, NY.  On view June 7 - July 8, there will be an opening reception on Thursday, June 8 at 6pm.

Emilie Gossiaux (b. 1989, New Orleans, LA) graduated in 2014 with a BFA from the Cooper Union School of Art in New York City, and is currently pursuing her MFA in the Yale University School of Art’s Sculpture Department.

Since losing her vision in 2010, Gossiaux’s altered experience of the world has seen her practice grow - finding inspiration in dreams, memories, sensuality, and non-visual sensory perceptions.  Relying solely on her sense of touch and proprioception, she demonstrates a profound sensitivity towards texture, space, and material. Alongside her studio art practice, Gossiaux also works as a museum educator at The Metropolitan Museum of Art with Access and Community programs.  She co-teaches a studio class for blind and visually impaired visitors in the Met’s Seeing Through Drawing program and has led several gallery tours for general audiences exploring cross-sensory themes with the museum’s permanent collection.

Gossiaux’s work has featured in numerous shows at The Cooper Hewitt (New York, NY), Pippy Houldsworth (London, UK), The Smithsonian Institute of Art (Washington, DC), The Interlochen Center for the Arts (Interlochen, MI), Recess Art (New York, NY), StoreFrontLab (San Francisco, CA), Maw Gallery (New York, NY), and the Dedalus Foundation (Brooklyn, NY), among others.  She has won several honors and awards, including The John F. Kennedy Center’s VSA Prize for Excellence in 2013, the Elliot Lash Memorial Prize for Excellence in Sculpture in 2014, and was recently awarded the Dumfries House Residency at the Royal Drawing School in Scotland this summer.