As we prepare for our next exhibition, the last in our Sydenham space, we took some time to sit down with Jen to talk about her upcoming solo show, Fight or Flight. In this quick chat, she shares insights into her evolving practice, the personal experiences shaping her work, and the emotions tied to closing this chapter of Fiksate’s story.
This is your first solo exhibition here at Fiksate, which feels like a pretty big moment. How does it feel to finally have the spotlight on you?
It feels pretty weird. I’ve rolled out exhibitions for so many amazing artists over the years, and we (Nath and I) have done a pretty good job at it! It feels weird doing the checklist for myself for a change, especially when I’m juggling actually making the artwork and doing all the prep for the show!
I’ll clarify that I have had a solo exhibition before, in 2010 at Le’Strange Gallery, but this is my first solo exhibition of my Jen Heads work, which has been my main art output over the last 11 years. It’s been quite the evolution and I’m really excited to showcase this new direction and development in a show.
Jen Heads has shown up in so many different mediums over the years. What made you move into layered glass for Fight or Flight?
Working on glass for me sparked when I did a Jen Heads installation on the Rambler/Drifter Hotel’s window for the most recent Flare Festival. That, and my husband Nathan’s creative practice uses layered glass and I was the framer, so I have layered glass before; however, when I put this construction with Jen Heads, it immediately took on a life of its own.
With layers of glass, there is a transparency and depth of field that creates such a fantasy, and it blends so well with how I have perceived Jen Heads to be since the beginning. It’s also fragile but strong, which felt right for the themes I’m working with. In works like Disassociation and Submersion, the elements of interest literally drift upward from behind the head, like thoughts or memories floating away. It’s a different kind of storytelling, and one surprising outcome is the fact the eyes within the head follow you around the room due to the different layers I’ve placed them on. Part creepy, part cool haha. I’m really enjoying the process and outcomes.
The show’s title, Fight or Flight, is loaded. How does that idea connect to the works themselves?
Fight or Flight is probably my most personal work to date, and this ties into so many of my lived experiences of the last few years. I’ve always explored the the human condition within Jen Heads, and Fight or Flight is one element of that - a biological response to a threat. Implosion VS. Explosion is probably the most in-your-face example - the head is still, but behind it, everything’s exploding in intense colour and chaos. On the flip side, Hide is about escaping, but within nature, which can be healing. So the fight or flight instinct can take you to some beautiful places, too, whether that be within yourself or finding solace elsewhere.
Nature comes up a lot in your work, even when the imagery feels urban. Where does that connection come from?
Well, we are a part of nature, part of the ecosystem. I find a lot of inspiration within nature. The regrowth and healing, the surviving the odds, the power of it, and obviously, nature is just so beautiful. Jen Heads took on a more ‘Mother Nature’ look after the birth of my son, which was completely transformative. The face became calm, stoic, nurturing and unwavering in the eye; however, the design element of the under-eye lines has always represented a tiredness, an inner exhaustion, and maybe Papatuanuku feels that way with us!
This is also the final exhibition for Fiksate for the current space in Sydenham. That must feel bittersweet.
Bittersweet it is. It’s been an era! I look back on the times with fondness and amazement, really, that we did what we did, and I sometimes don’t know how I did all of that! In 2017-2019 I had a full-time job doing retail design and project management, a new baby and was running Fiksate! We did 6 exhibitions in 2019! Crazy days!
Fiksate is something I am so proud of though, no matter how tough the times got. I poured everything into it and got to meet incredible artists, be part of a pretty unique community, meet amazing collectors and made fantastic connections with so many different walks of life. The learnings are invaluable and we had a lot of fun while doing it, so I can’t complain. However, times have been hard out there for so many industries… so it is the right time to move online only for a while and focus on our family and my own art, with some extra headspace to do so!
