About the work

One of the ways that the U.S. controls the physical bodies of its citizens is by incarcerating masses of its population which is reflected by the high rate of individuals in prisons. Considering this, I have created sculptures that are segregated, solitary cells which I imagine a body could fit into. While these forms allude to something out of a science fiction movie, they are in the shape of an octagon. It references the panopticon of Michel Foucault’s surveillance state where he describes a society that is always being watched. The octagon allows for central viewing on all sides; those being watched are unable to see when and by whom, they are being watched. I connect this with today’s society as we are monitored in our daily lives with the implementation of CCTV on roads, airports, shopping centers, schools and homes. A person living in the strictly controlled environment of the United States prison system, is subjected to the constant threat of surveillance that subsequently modifies their behaviour.

In the Catholic Church, its parishioners are guided through the sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation. The act of confession takes place in a small booth within the church, referred to as the confessional. I attempt to re-create this confined space with sealed off structures, albeit for the embedded grills which are punctured, manipulated confessional booth screens. These grills create boundaries between sinner and priest, prisoner and guard, and the concept of heaven and hell. At the same time, they become breathing holes for a mythical underworld or a passageway.

-Patricia Ayres

About the artist

PATRICIA AYRES (b. 1975, New York) attended the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Madison, ME (2019), received an MFA from Hunter College, New York (2018), BFA from Brooklyn College, New York and an A.A.S degree in Fashion Design from The Fashion Institute of Technology, New York. Her work has been exhibited at Matthew Brown Gallery, Los Angeles; Workplace Gallery, London; Liste Art Fair Basel, Switzerland; Fragment Gallery, Moscow; Koenig & Clinton Gallery, New York; Kornfeld Gallery, Berlin, and The Bronx Council on the Arts: Longwood Gallery at Hostos Community College of The City University of New York. She was an artist-in-residence at Fountainhead Residency, Miami; Sharpe-Walentas Studio Program, Brooklyn; The Studios at Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, North Adams, MA; Lower Manhattan Cultural Center, New York; Sculpture Space Residency, New York (forthcoming), and Dieu Donné Workshop Residency, New York (forthcoming). A recipient of the NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellowship in Sculpture; nominee for the Rema Hort Mann Foundation Emerging Artist Grant. Ayres is currently an Artist-in-Residence with The Monira Foundation at Mana Contemporary in Jersey City. Ayres’ work is represented in the permanent collections of De la Cruz Collection, Miami; The Bunker Art Collection, West Palm Beach, and Zuzāns Collection, Zuzeum, Riga, Latvia.