Significant Otherness [Mother Gallery, Manhattan]

Press Release: https://mothergallery.art/significant-otherness

Emilie Louise Gossiaux’s solo exhibition Significant Otherness consists of ceramic sculptures and pen-and-crayon drawings that consider interspecies bonds to transcend conventional hierarchies between humans and nonhuman species. Mirroring the exhibition title, the phrase “significant otherness” originates from feminist scholar and theorist Donna Haraway’s Companion Species Manifesto: Dogs, People and Significant Otherness in which the writer deftly explores relational encounters between humans and nonhuman species bonded in their significant otherness, or a complex recognition of difference. Haraway also riffs on the popular phrase “significant other” to claim kinship across species, particularly between humans and dogs, just as Gossiaux does within her own artistic practice. Centering her own interspecies relationships throughout the exhibition, Gossiaux describes her nine-year relationship with her golden Labrador retriever and guide dog, London, as one that is simultaneously practical, spousal, maternal and emotional. In a new artistic exploration, Gossiaux also finds solace in connecting with an unlikely species—the alligator.

Gossiaux presents new earthenware ceramic pieces as an homage to London’s life. She recreates objects of personal significance associated with London’s everyday work routine, playtime, and pleasure, such as rubber chew toys of various shapes, her collar and name tag, harness, and leash. Dog collars, harnesses, and leashes serve as bodily extensions that mutually and physically connect dog to human and human to dog. In contrast to the objects associated with the working aspects of London’s life as a guide dog, the artist also recreates a favorite bulbous chew toy, whose interior is often stuffed with thick globs of peanut butter as a treat to lick, in turn, giving the object a sensual dimension. In this collection of nostalgic memorabilia, Gossiaux honors seemingly quotidian objects that nurture and shape shared intimacies between dogs and humans.

Gossiaux also debuts three extraordinary ceramic human-animal hybrid figures, which each occupy distinct postures and physical characteristics. In her titles for Dreaming Doggirl, Doggirl, and Alligatorgirl, she creates compound words to further hybridize the language she uses to describe her figures. Native to the three million acres of wetlands in and around New Orleans, where Gossiaux is also from, the alligator becomes her alter ego, a feminist embodiment to express feelings of anger or frustration. In the sculpture Alligatorgirl, the creature’s jaws are wide open, revealing a human’s expressionless face surrounded by sharp jagged teeth, just before she devours the body whole. In Alligatorgirl Riot, Gossiaux draws yellow-eyed reptilian creatures with human limbs and alligator bodies swimming together, with the exception of one of them vigorously climbing out of the water and crawling into a human’s bed. With the known, persistent threat of climate change to the alligator’s wetland habitat as a result of the irresponsible ways we humans have treated our environment, Gossiaux’s Alligatorgirl works subtly allude to a future where the animals might turn even more aggressive, especially when feeling threatened.

In addition to her work exploring interspecies relationships, Gossiaux depicts other forms of mutual coexistence in her drawings, which she creates either from memory or through touch, as with her sculptures. In Moon and Sun, Gossiaux draws a crescent moon and sun, positioned side by side, both taking up equal space in the sky. We often think of the sky as dominated by either the sun or moon depending on the time of day; however, their coexistence is a common occurrence. This drawing serves as a compelling connection to Gossiaux’s other bodies of work that propose alternative ways we as humans can exist with and among other beings, together in our significant otherness.

—Alessandra Gómez, April 2022

A ceramic sculpture of a humanoid alligator with woman’s legs and arms. The body of the alligator is painted jade green, and her almond shaped eyes are painted bright yellow. The arms and legs are left unpainted, and are the off white color of the clay. Her ams and legs are bent underneath her body, like she is crouching low, and her mouth is wide open with long jagged fangs. Inside of the alligator’s mouth is a person’s face with a nonplussed expression.
“Alligatorgirl”, 2021, 3.75” x 6.75” x 16.5”, cold wax medium and oil paint on earthenware ceramic.
A ceramic sculpture of a humanoid alligator with woman’s legs and arms. The body of the alligator is painted jade green, and her almond shaped eyes are painted bright yellow. The arms and legs are left unpainted, and are the off white color of the clay. Her ams and legs are bent underneath her body, like she is crouching low, and her mouth is wide open with long jagged fangs. Inside of the alligator’s mouth is a person’s face with a nonplussed expression.
“Alligatorgirl”, 2021, 3.75” x 6.75” x 16.5”, cold wax medium and oil paint on earthenware ceramic.
A landscape drawing of 3 sexy scary hybrid human alligators with woman legs and arms, long femme eyelashes, with dark shadowy green alligator bodies with yellow eyes and wide open mouths with sharp fangs. The setting is in my childhood bedroom in Louisiana, with blueish green water rising up around my bed. Two alligatorgirls are swimming and thrashing  their long tails in the water below, while the third is climbing   up onto the bed, that is kind of breaking under her weight. The mattress has pink blankets, which are  trailing onto the floor.
“Alligatorgirl Riot”, 2022”, 23” x 35”, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.
A landscape drawing of 3 sexy scary hybrid human alligators with woman legs and arms, long femme eyelashes, with dark shadowy green alligator bodies with yellow eyes and wide open mouths with sharp fangs. The setting is in my childhood bedroom in Louisiana, with blueish green water rising up around my bed. Two alligatorgirls are swimming and thrashing  their long tails in the water below, while the third is climbing   up onto the bed, that is kind of breaking under her weight. The mattress has pink blankets, which are  trailing onto the floor.
“Alligatorgirl Riot 2”, 2022”, 23” x 35”, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.
An installation view showing two Alligatorgirl drawings side-by-side and four ceramic sculptures of dog gear and toys - displayed on pedestals, the wall, and the floor.
“Significant Otherness” installation view, Mother Gallery, Manhattan.
An installation view showing two Alligatorgirl drawings side-by-side and four ceramic sculptures of dog gear and toys - displayed on pedestals, the wall, and the floor.
“Significant Otherness” installation view, Mother Gallery, Manhattan.
A ceramic sculpture of a dog leash wrapped up in a loose coil. The ceramic is painted chocolate brown to look like soft leather, and the metal clasp and buttons are painted silver.
“Leash”, 2022, 1.75” x 12” x 13”, cold wax medium and oil paint on earthenware ceramic.
A ceramic sculpture of a guide dog harness, painted chocolate brown to look like soft leather.
“Harness”, 2022, 3.75” x 10.25” x 22.5”, cold wax medium and oil paint on earthenware ceramic.
Installation detail view showing sculptures of a dog Leash and Harness displayed on low-height pedestals, a Red Kong sculpture on the floor, and a Golden Dog Collar hung on the wall.
“Significant Otherness” installation view, Mother Gallery, Manhattan.
A ceramic sculpture of London’s peanut butter Kong painted red. It has the shape and mystique of a sex toy.
“Red Kong”, 2022, 6” x 3” x 3”, cold wax medium and oil paint on earthenware ceramic.
A ceramic sculpture of a dog collar hangs on the wall. The collar is wrapped with shiny gold string, and the dog tag is round, and painted silver with a black outline of a human eye with long eyelashes painted in the center.
“Golden Dog Collar”, 2022, 1.5” x 6” x 6”, earthenware ceramic, oil paint, gold string.
An installation view showing three small ballpoint pen drawings, three pedestals with small ceramic animal sculptures, and two dog toy sculptures on the floor.
“Significant Otherness” installation view, Mother Gallery, Manhattan.
An off white doll sized ceramic sculpture of a woman with a dog’s head, and dog nipples lying down on her back. Her eyes are carved out from the clay to look like closed eyes with long eyelashes. Her left hand is resting on her left thigh, and her right hand rests flat against her right leg.
“Dreaming Doggirl”, 2022, 2.75” x 4.5” x 12.75”, earthenware ceramic.
An off white doll sized ceramic sculpture of a woman with a dog’s head, and dog nipples lying down on her back. Her eyes are carved out from the clay to look like closed eyes with long eyelashes. Her left hand is resting on her left thigh, and her right hand rests flat against her right leg.
“Dreaming Doggirl”, 2022, 2.75” x 4.5” x 12.75”, earthenware ceramic.
A simple black and white line drawing of London, a Labrador Retriever standing up on her hind legs, with human arms and hands. She holds onto a dog leash, which extends out beyond the top left corner of the drawing, she is looking up towards the leash with her eyes closed in a serene smile. Her other arm is out at her side. She looks like she is skipping, propeling her body towards the right side of the page, pulling the leash along with her.
“London with Ribbon”, 2022, 9” x 7”, ballpoint pen on paper.
A black and white line drawing of a crescent Moon on the left, and a round Sun on the right.
“Moon and Sun”, 2022, 9” x 7”, ballpoint pen on paper.
A black and white line drawing of an alligator standing up on her hind legs, with a human head inside of the alligator’s wide open mouth. She has a large tail that coils around her legs on the floor.
“Alter Ego”, 2022, 9” x 7”, ballpoint pen on paper.
An off white ceramic sculpture of a labrador dog on all fours, but her front legs are human arms and hands.
“Doggirl”, 2022, 6.75” x 4.75” x 10.5”, earthenware ceramic.
An off white ceramic sculpture of a labrador dog on all fours, but her front legs are human arms and hands.
“Doggirl”, 2022, 6.75” x 4.75” x 10.5”, earthenware ceramic.
An installation view showing two London Midsummer drawings side-by-side and two ceramic sculptures of dog gear and toys - displayed on pedestals, the wall, and the floor.
“Significant Otherness” installation view, Mother Gallery, Manhattan.
A ceramic sculpture of one of London’s dog toys that resembles a dumbbell. It is painted purple.
“Purple Thing”, 2022, 4.25” x 4.25” x 12”, cold wax medium and oil paint on earthenware ceramic.
A landscape drawing of three golden Labrador Retrievers with human arms and hands dancing on their hind legs around a Maypole, which raises out from the ground in the center of the drawing. The Maypole is drawn to resemble my extendable white cane, with a cane tip, and a black looped handle. There are three pink dog leashes coming out from the top of the white cane maypole, which each dog holds onto as they circle around it. There are trees in the background, above the trees in the sky is a pale blue crescent moon at the top left, and an yellow orange sun in the top right. There are red flowers on the ground, and the colors of the trees feels like the birth of spring.
“London, Midsummer 1”, 2022, 23” x 35”, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.
A landscape drawing of three golden Labrador Retrievers with human arms and hands dancing on their hind legs around a Maypole, which raises out from the ground in the center of the drawing. The Maypole is drawn to resemble my extendable white cane, with a cane tip, and a black looped handle. There are three pink dog leashes coming out from the top of the white cane maypole, which each dog holds onto as they circle around it. There are trees in the background, above the trees in the sky is a pale blue crescent moon at the top left, and an yellow orange sun in the top right. There are red flowers on the ground, and the colors of the trees feels like the birth of spring.
“London, Midsummer 2”, 2022, 23” x 35”, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.