ju90
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ABOUT THE ARTWORK:
In Platinum Jubilee, shot during the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee celebrations, Ju Gosling aka ju90 explores a number of themes around power, ableism, colonialism and Covid-19, and embeds upcycling as an aesthetic. Ju is seated in a wheeled chair of an earlier age that has been upcycled, with the wood gilded silver and blue electric wire replacing the original basketwork. Queen Elizabeth II preferred not to attend her own Jubilee events if it meant being seen using a wheelchair. Ju's green feathered headdress is reminiscent of paintings of Colonial ’subjects’, as well as reflecting the Carnival traditions of previously enslaved communities, and her purple gilded walking stick bears the carved head of an African. Ju’s spinal brace is covered with blue canvas and decorated with plastic jewels and small mirrors, reflecting the gulf in income between the Queen and her subjects. Ju is seated as if on parade, embodying the Queen and waving at the crowd, but is entirely alone, isolated by the Covid-19 pandemic that has kept Ju in her studio since March 2020. The reflection of the ring light in her glasses reflects the fact that this is a selfie portrait. Credits: Ju's spinal brace was decorated by sculptor Andrew Logan for the Adorn, Equip exhibition in 2001 and was first worn in Ju’s film installation Fight (http://www.ju90.co.uk/fight.htm). Ju’s crown was created by ParaCarnival for Ju to wear in Hackney Carnival 2019, and was subsequently gifted to her. Ju upcycled the walking stick and chair.
BIO:
Ju Gosling aka ju90 is a UK-based mid-career artist who works across digital arts, performance, text and sound, exploring disability, gender and concepts of normality. Ju is also a co-founder and Artistic Director of Together! 2012 CIC and Folk in Motion CIC, and is a longstanding Co Chair of Regard, the UK’s LGBTQI+ Disabled People’s Organisation.
DESCRIPTION:
Platinum Jubilee
Ju sits in an antique wheelchair before a background of gray and pewter colored velour. The wooden frame is painted silver and the seat and back are woven grids of bright blue wire. Ju has pale skin and wears glasses with black frames. A gold ring is reflected in the lenses. Her hair is covered by a green turban trimmed with gold braid, topped by a gold crown with green jewels, and finished with 2-foot-long green feathers. Ju wears a black crushed velvet top with pale gray crushed velvet pants and shiny silver shoes. Buckled over the top is a back brace adorned on the right side with royal blue fabric and blue and silver jewels. Her left-hand rests on a purple carved walking stick. Her ringed right hand is raised in a wave with the elbow bent at her waist.
-description by Teri Grossman
Ju sits in an antique wheelchair before a background of gray and pewter colored velour. The wooden frame is painted silver and the seat and back are woven grids of bright blue wire. Ju has pale skin and wears glasses with black frames. A gold ring is reflected in the lenses. Her hair is covered by a green turban trimmed with gold braid, topped by a gold crown with green jewels, and finished with 2-foot-long green feathers. Ju wears a black crushed velvet top with pale gray crushed velvet pants and shiny silver shoes. Buckled over the top is a back brace adorned on the right side with royal blue fabric and blue and silver jewels. Her left-hand rests on a purple carved walking stick. Her ringed right hand is raised in a wave with the elbow bent at her waist.
-description by Teri Grossman
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Opulent Mobility by A. Laura Brody is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License
The Opulent Mobility license refers to the exhibit and its audio descriptions. Individual artworks are the property of the individual artists.