Bio
Artist Statement
In the studio the material, raw or found, dictates the process. I begin by gathering materials directly from the surrounding area. Exploring the way in which a material can be altered, naturally creates a generative body of work. The process is cyclical, one transformation feeds on the next, and elements gain strength in number. The studio space revolves around, and cannibalizes, itself. Ink is made with found materials. Old works may be worked back into through pulping, sanding, tearing and painting. An object is drawn, then used to draw with. Raw materials such as clay, cloth, cement and plaster are also used as building blocks. Pieces are a conversation between past works, new information gleaned from materials, and the space in which it is created. The is often a mixture of sculptures and works on paper.
Penelope Anstruther is a British born, multi-disciplinary artist living and working in Oakland, California. Taking materials and visual cues derived directly from the immediate landscape pieces span the range of site-specific installation, printmaking, book arts, ceramics and experimental video.
Anstruther began her arts education at SACI, in Florence Italy, after which she completed her Foundation Year at City & Guilds of London Art School. Subsequently, Anstruther gained her BFA in Printmaking from the San Francisco Art Institute, CA, spending a semester in Osaka, Japan, focusing on monoprint & book arts.
She has exhibited throughout the United States and internationally, most notably at the Tate Modern, London. She has had solo shows in Atlanta, Seattle, San Francisco and Oakland and has been artist in residence at the Prairie Ronde Artist Residency Vicksburg, MI and the Mutual Artist Residency in East Oakland CA.