Interview with Jodi Woodward

Jodi Woodward is an artist based in Alstonvale, in the Northern Rivers region of NSW. Her exhibition Make It Darker opened at Firstdraft in March 2020. And then like so many exhibitions and events across the globe, it was abruptly, but necessarily, foreclosed. Co-Director Jamey Nguyen caught up with Jodi about her practice, her new studio, and making art in self-isolation.

Jodi Woodward. Photo: Craig Dillenbeck

Jamey Nguyen: If you were to briefly tell somebody unfamiliar with art or with your practice, what would you tell them you make or do?

Jodi Woodward: My art practice incorporates expanded drawing, installation and photography – I like to explore ‘drawing’ beyond its traditional boundaries and definition. I use mark making, gesture and repetition in my work to explore my personal relationship to identity, trauma and memory. My work is process-driven; I’m much more invested in making, than in what is made. Through this, I develop a close relationship with the materials – investigating the limits of different materials and my limits as an artist.

Jodi Woodward, Make It Darker, 2020, installation view, Firstdraft. Photo: Zan Wimberley

“I’m much more invested in making, than in what is made”

Photo: Jodi Woodward Instagram @jodilwoodward

JN: What was the inception of this project and how did it develop?

JW: The project started in a completely different direction during my Honours year at Queensland College of Art (Griffith University). I was working on creating a series of soot drawings using an oxyacetylene torch. At the time I was only a couple of months out from finishing chemotherapy for ovarian cancer when I realised that I hadn’t recovered enough – using the oxyacetylene torch proved too physically demanding.

Wanting to create the same dense darkness as the soot, I began experimenting with other materials. After many trials and exploration, I came up with created a mixture of oil stick, charcoal powder and paint which I hand blended into a paste. Using the paste, I hand surfaced each of the 680 marine ply tiles individually.

Jodi Woodward, Make It Darker, 2020, installation view, Firstdraft. Photo: Zan Wimberley

JN: How do you choose your materials and what significance do they have?

JW: I’m drawn to what might be considered traditional drawing materials such as ink, charcoal, oil stick, pen. But I also like to explore and experiment with non-traditional materials and techniques. I typically work in black, grey scale, white and red. Again and again I am drawn to these colours in my work.

“The layers and repetition in my work convey art making as lived experience, the endurance of the artist infused with the work. ”

JN: What is the significance of repetition and endurance in the process of making your work?

JW: The layers and repetition in my work convey art making as lived experience, the endurance of the artist infused with the work. I’m revealing aspects of identity while asking viewers to contemplate their own and others. Identity is neither static nor linear – it’s constantly evolving, influenced by our experiences and memory.

Photo: Jodi Woodward Instagram @jodilwoodward

JN: What does an ideal day of making art or being in the studio look like for you? And what are you working on now?

JW: A day in the studio... I recently moved into a new place and for the first time I have a dedicated studio space. My studio is no longer my kitchen bench, dining table or lounge room floor! After breaky I usually work in the studio until around 2pm. I dedicate one day a week to catching up with other artists, visiting galleries, and working on different proposals. I’ve been trying to get a website up and going, but it keeps getting pushed to the bottom of the to-do list...

At the moment I’m working on a new series of drawings, exploring the same materials I used in Make It Darker, this time working on paper. They are for a show called Tessellated Memory at the Northern Rivers Community Gallery opening in late August. At this stage I am not sure if this show will go ahead or not... but for now I’m just enjoying the process of making in my new studio space.

Take a virtual tour of Jodi Woodward’s exhibition Make It Darker here.

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