photo: Dylan Hollingsworth
The 29 year old German born artist Corey Godfrey made a splash in the placid waters of the Dallas art scene last weekend. The UNT graduate (painting major) has several pieces of her craft on display at the most recent, Forces of Nature opening at Kettle Art Gallery in Deep Ellum. I had a chance to catch up with Corey after a very packed opening and she enlightened me on everything from art school to the sociological effects of gender stereotyping. Corey’s work is feminine, erotic, folk and beautiful. Take a look.
Scott: “So I know this is sort of a cliché, high school newspaper kind of question but please tell me exactly what your work is about”.
Corey: “It came to me as a dream, a dream about macaroni pornography. At the time I started doing it, I really considered it more arts and crafts than anything else”.
Scott: “It always seemed that the art program at UNT is rooted more in tradition than individual creativity. How were you able to make this kind of work in your medium and come out relatively unscathed? Did I just have a bad experience?”
Corey: “I hate that, I always hear about people having a bad art school experience and I feel so bad for them because honestly, the professors I had were a great support and inspiration to me. I did take some heat though, especially in critiques. People considered me a folk painter, but at the time photorealism was such a popular genre and was the trend to follow. I’ve always found photrealism boring to a certain extent”.
Scott: “Why pornography?”
Corey: “I guess I feel like I’m taking sexual images really for men in these kind of masculine magazines and re-creating them for women again; taking them back to feminine sensibilities. I didn’t realize it until later on…or the further into the series I got”
Scott: “Your pieces at Kettle are desert landscapes. Is there a hidden sexuality in that?”
Corey: “Of course there is. The desert is a very erotic place. Cactus is the phallic that sometimes bloom the most beautiful little flowers thus turning the cactus feminine. I find it all so interesting. It’s also another idea that came to me in a dream. I always think about my dreams; they’re very powerful in my life. All my art is based on dreams”.
Scott: “From looking at your work I can definitely see how the use of yarn on pornographic images feminizes them. It gives the images almost a soft 3D cushion. I cannot help but think of how many hours it must take to actually complete one. Do you get tired just thinking about it?”
Corey: “You know honestly I’m kind of a workaholic. I have to work all the time; I can’t function without work to do. They do take a lot of time to create but I really enjoy the craft of what I do. I enjoy spending my time making art”.
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When you have a chance, stop by Kettle Art Gallery in Deep Ellum to see Corey Godfrey’s work. If you miss her this time be sure and follow THE BLOW-UP blog for updates on her openings as we will be following her closely. I love finding artists like this because Dallas is known for having such a corporate/design based art world and Corey Godfrey is a great example of someone breaking that stigma. Galleries like Kettle, IIII Studio Gallery and Rising Gallery do a great job of showing great art that defies this city’s norm.
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