Elevated Residue (2018)
Wood chips, cotton thread.
University of Lethbridge | Lethbridge, AB.

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Elevated Residue arose during a time of reflection in Addison’s undergraduate studies and personal life. At the end of her third year in the Studio Arts program at the University of Lethbridge, Addison began to reconsider the intentions behind her work as well as her own relationship to the environments she lives in.

This work marks a pivotal moment in Addison’s creative journey as she transitioned from two-dimensional drawings to three-dimensional wood sculpture and ultimately found freedom in installation art. Elevated Residue challenged Addison to genuinely consider her surroundings – from the materials she felt connected to (wood and fibres), to the workspaces she frequented across the University of Lethbridge (the woodshop and student art studios). The wood remnants in this work are residues that resulted from an earlier wood carving - materials that would have been typically discarded. However, Elevated Residue brings these delicate traces of human and plant engagement into focus. Nearly 200 wood chips were gently wrapped with cotton thread and suspended from the ceiling of a high-traffic hallway in the fine arts department. Each wood chip, hung at varying heights, from five to six feet above the floor – approximately eye level.

While the installation received mixed feedback regarding its placement, many viewers felt that the tenderness of the work inspired them to slow down and reflect on a space which they often overlooked.