Systems and Microbes (2022)

Veronica Ryan

Breadfruit
2021
Bronze
86 x 97.8 x 80 cm

Soursop
2021
Bronze
97 x 170 x 85 cm

Sharjah Art Foundation Collection Courtesy of the artist

Overview

Concerned with notions of dislocation and belonging, Veronica Ryan’s sculptures evoke shapes, forms and objects associated
with her heritage. Cast in bronze, Soursop (2021) and Breadfruit (2021) are large-scale reproductions of the namesake fruits, reflecting her interest in the exotification of native flora by the colonial gaze. Cocoa Passion in Tandem (2021) features pigmented ceramic stoneware approximations of cocoa fruit, displayed at the centre of a jute rug.
Liminal Spaces (2019), Feathers in Her Head (2019) and Dem Mash You Up Man (2020) incorporate
hanging fabrics flecked with mango, soursop and custard apple seeds. The newly commissioned series Systems and Microbes (2022) comprises hanging assemblages
of date nets, bottle tops, plastic refuse, hair nets and other materials sourced in Sharjah.