Chance and the unpredictable underscores Sarah Edmondson’s art practice. What might be considered a failure one moment is reinterpreted into something positive the next. Her diverse practice includes the use of happenstance of found text, unintended event of the technological glitch, printmaking processes, the use of random number generators for placement, and the laborious process of needlepoint tapestry, rethinking pixelation using the underlying grid of the canvas.
The slow process of stitching evokes a sense of the passing of time and is the antithesis of chance. Edmondson works on several bodies of work concurrently, from embossing to relief printing, screen printing and collage to needlepoint tapestry, which amplifies the idea of slippage that chance allows.
This has been explored in several group and solo exhibition, including 'According to Chance' at Galerie Pompom, Sydney (2018) which was installed with the help of a random number generator to determine positions on the wall within a predetermined grid, and 'Reminiscentia', Watt Space Gallery, Newcastle (2014) that explored the chance event of neurological disorders through the use of text and childhood photos.
Edmondson was awarded the 2018 Brunswick Street Gallery Small Works Art Prize and has been a finalist in numerous awards including Stills: National Still Life Award (2017), receiving a judges’ commendation. Her work is held in the collection of Coffs Harbour Regional Gallery, among other private collections in Australia and overseas. Edmondson graduate with a Master of Fine Art from the National Art School, Sydney in 2018, and holds a Bachelor of Fine Art, from the University of Newcastle (2014).
