Joy Millet

Education
2024 Fine Art MA University of Creative Arts, Farnham

Artist’s Statement
My modernist, minimalist, geometric sculptural forms reference neo-classical architecture that house ambiguous signs and symbols drawn from forms found in nature.  The symbols invite the viewer to take time out to contemplate their own meaning of them.  Paradoxically, the simplicity of them provides a salve to our snappy, emoji-driven, fast-paced world.
I craft organic shapes from the modernist material Perspex and support them in metal or wooden geometric structures and semiotic space to create a crisp, pared down, rhythmic, colourful and yet playful aesthetic. In the construction process, particular attention is given to the balance of colour, space and form to create harmony and a graphic design feel.  The sculptures represent the existential dichotomies of the Apollonian built environment (or indeed, other manufactured systems) juxtaposed with Dionysian nature and of our rational and instinctive inner worlds.
Often site-specific, the works draw on the architectural style and ethos of a particular arts hub.  They can also incorporate movement, either kinetically or as a trompe l’oeil.  Experiments in layering to create a kaleidoscopic visual effect; extending the lines of form to create possibilities for new forms; paying attention to precision and the edges of shapes and consistency in the use of materials all add interest to the works.