Sophia Roe is a Leeds based artist born in North Yorkshire. Working in the medium of hand-woven tapestry and using synthetic and organic fibres in contrast, Sophia’s art practice explores human relationships with animals and the environment in material culture. She uses process and medium to build meaning in her work – the time taken for the process provides a space in which the artist reflects on the significance of the work, hand-to-thread contact with the interconnected structure of weaving ties her to the subject, and the weaving of natural and synthetic fibres metaphorically connect the meaning and material.
In Fallen Frogs on Pottery Lane, Sophia Roe explores relationships between animals, humans, and the environment in material culture. Process and medium are central to her work – the interconnected thread structure of weaving and the time-consuming nature of the practice create metaphorically connected meanings and provide a space in which she can reflect.
Fallen Frogs on Pottery Lane materialised after the artist accidentally killed an unknown number of frogs while driving. The violence of machinery, presented in the tapestry as yellow headlight beams and tyre track motifs, intersects with the natural life cycle of the frogs which are stylised in unnatural colours and cartoonish designs.
The work aims to reflect on and atone for the impact of human actions and subverts the often monumental form of tapestry to concern apparently inconsequential creatures.
