Nature From Bed [Wave Hill] – Emilie Louise Gossiaux

Emilie Louise Gossiaux
Nature from Bed
Wave Hill House
August 31, 2024 – January 5, 2025

Having lost her vision in 2010, Gossiaux’s experience of nature doesn’t always take place outdoors. In fact, she often accesses the outdoors from her bed. For example, as a Winter Workspace artist-in-residence at Wave Hill in 2021, Gossiaux encountered the gardens primarily through detailed verbal descriptions provided by one of the curators. Whether listening to audio recordings, dreaming of plant-human hybrid bodies, or cuddling with London—her guide dog and close companion—under her floral bedspread, Gossiaux does not need to be outside to feel at one with nature. Her work illustrates that physical and imaginary walls cannot delineate nature and wildlife from our day-to-day existence. In this way, Gossiaux’s drawings are guided by tactile sensation, taking on a highly intimate quality both in subject matter and form. The artist uses ballpoint pen and crayon to feel her lines as she works. Using playful marks and bright colors, images of hummingbirds licking the inside of human ears create a visceral sensory experience for the viewer that brings us closer to both our natural surroundings and the artist’s experience of the world. In doing so, Gossiaux invites viewers to move beyond human-centrism and imagine modes of life in which people and non-human species share an interdependence. As a result, new forms of kinship and ways of relating to each other emerge as central to Gossiaux’s work.

Emilie L. Gossiaux: Nature from Bed is organized by Afriti Bankwalla, Curatorial Administrative Assistant, with Gabriel de Guzman, Director of Arts and Chief Curator, and Rachel Gugelberger, Curator of Visual Arts.

In this image are two landscape drawings in white wooden frames hanging on a light yellow wall. The first drawing on the left is called, “Alligatorgirl on Bed”, in which a hybrid woman alligator crouches on all fours on top of a bed with pink bed linens. She looks menacing and triumphant. The second drawing on the right, is called, “Settle Down My Desire, Settle Down”. Here, Alligatorgirl is lying on her back in bed. On her torso, are two little pink nipples, and er arms are crossed over her stomach. Her head is thrown back against the head board, and looks as though she is in ecstasy. — “Alligatorgirl on Bed”; “Settle Down My Desire, Settle Down”, both 2024, 7″ x 9″, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.

“She Talks to Snakes”In this image, is a vertical drawing in a white wooden frame, hanging on a light yellow wall, called, “She Talks to Snakes”. A minimalist line drawing of a woman with long hair down her back standing facing away from the viewer. She holds up her right hand in front of her, and coiling down her arm is a dark red snake. At the bottom of the drawing, are the words “she talks to snakes”. — “She Talks to Snakes”, 2024, 7″ x 9″, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.

In this image, a landscape drawing, called “Santa Barbara Orchids” is in a white wooden frame hanging on a light yellow wall. It is a colorful drawing with pink and yellow flowers arranged in a curving arch around the paper. At the base of the flower’s stems are creepy crawlies coming out from underneath, like a snake, spiders and beetles. — “Santa Barbara Orchids”, 2024, 7″ x 9″, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.

In this image, there are two landscape drawings in white wooden frames hanging on a light yellow wall. The drawing on the left, is called “Kirby with Momo”, a drawing of Kirby in bed with a black tuxedo cat named, Momo, who is resting on Kirby’s belly. On the right, is “Kirby’s back with Blue Bedspread”. Here, Kirby is turned away from the viewer, with his back facing us. He is underneath a blue floral duvet. — “Kirby with Momo”; “Kirby’s Back with Blue Bed Spread”, both 2024, 7″ x 9″, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.

The first drawing on the left is “Alligatorgirls in Flood Water”, a landscape drawing of turquoise blue water with the backs of Alligatorgirls swimming throughout the page. The second drawing in the center is also a landscape drawing called, “Alligatorgirl Crossing”. In this drawing, Alligatorgirl takes up the whole bottom of the paper. Her long tail lashes out behind her body, and her mouth is wide open to show off her sharp tooth fangs to an oncoming red car at the top right side of the paper. And the last drawing on the right is a vertical drawing called, “Alligatorgirl Smile”. Here, Alligatorgirl is standing upright on her hind legs with the head of a woman. Her eyes are blissfully closed like in a dream, and she has a little smile on her face. — “Alligatorgirls in Flood Water”; “Alligatorgirl Crossing”; “Alligatorgirl Smile”, all 2024, 7″ x 9″, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.

This is a vertical drawing in a white wooden frame hanging on a blue wall, called “”Love Bunny”. In this drawing, two people are lying in bed underneath a duvet patterned with vibrant blue flowers. At the foot of the bed, a small white bunny with a cotton tail is lying down facing away from the viewer. Above the heads of the two people in bed on the left side, is a small, blue crescent moon, and on the right side is a small yellow sun. — “Love Bunny”, 2024, 7″ x 9″, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.

A landscape drawing in a white wooden frame hanging on a blue wall, called “Emilie and London in Bed”. A line drawing of Emilie (the artist) sleeping under a white duvet with blue flowers printed on it. London, Emilie's Yellow Lab guide dog, is curled up next to her head, also asleep. — “Emilie and London in Bed”, 2024, 7″ x 9″, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.

In this image, 2 landscape drawings in white wooden frames hang on a light yellow wall. On the left, is “Hummingbird in My Ear”. A blue green hummingbird with a red chin is poking her long beak out from the left side of the drawing. Its eyes are closed with long eyelashes, and her tongue curls out of her beak in a spiral, reaching into a human’s ear on the right side of the drawing. The ear has long brown hair tucked behind it. The second drawing on the right, is a landscape drawing, called “Flowers for London”, a drawing of a cluster of pink, scarlet, and peach flowers with 2 rows of petals circling around the center. — “Hummingbird in My Ear”; “Flowers for London”, both 2024, 7″ x 9″, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.

In this image, 3 vertical drawings in white wooden frames hang on a blue wall. The first drawing on the left, is called, “Raccoon with Moths and Bowl”. At the bottom right side of the drawing, a raccoon sits up on her hind legs, with her bushy grey and black tail curled up around her side. She has her hands clasped together in front of her chest, as she gazes down towards a silver dog bowl to her left. Flying up above her head, are a bunch of brown and orange moths. The background is filled in with sketchy black lines. To the right of this drawing, is, “Raccoons with Moths”. On the right side of this drawing, is a raccoon sitting on her hind legs, with her bushy striped tail curled up around her left side. With her right paw, she reaches up towards a big brown and orange moth flying in the air on the left side of the drawing. At the bottom, is another raccoon crouching down on the ground with his tail curled around in front and covering up most of his body. His nose is pointing up to stare up at the big moth flying over his head. And to the right, is the third drawing, “Raccoon with Nest and Egg”. On the top left side of the paper, a raccoon is lying down with her bushy tail curled up in front of her body. She appears to be emerging from tall blades of grass, as she reaches out with her left paw to pick up a light blue robins egg from a nest in the middle of the drawing. — “Raccoons with Moths and Bowl”; “Raccoons with Moths”; “Raccoon with Nest and Egg”, all 2024, 7″ x 9″, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.

In this image, 3 landscape drawings in white wooden frames hang on a blue wall. The first drawing on the left, is called, “Willa”, which is a close up drawing of Willa the cat’s face. She is a funny looking tortoise shell cat with a wide face and a smooshy pink nose. The second drawing in the center, is called, “ “Kirby in Bed with Hedgehog and Chick Fighting Over Worm”. Kirby is sitting in bed, looking down and reading a book with his head resting in his right hand. He has a big bushy brown beard and thick eyebrows. Most of his body is covered by a blue, floral duvet. On top of the duvet cover, on the right side of the drawing, is a little fuzzy brown hedgehog, facing right towards a small, yellow chick with pink talons. On the bed between them, is a squiggly pink worm. This drawing is based off a dream. And the third drawing on the right, is called “Momo, Yoko, and Willa III”, which is a drawing of 3 cats. Momo is a small black tuxedo cat with white paws that look like little slippers. To Momo’s right, is his sister, Yoko, who is also a black tuxedo cat. And Willa, is a tortoise shell cat with gray, tan, and brown speckles. “Humming Bird Tongue”; “Dream of Peace Lily”; “London Sniffs Cherry Blossoms” In this image, 3 landscape drawings in white wooden frames hang on a blue wall. The first drawing on the left, is called, “Willa”, which is a close up drawing of Willa the cat’s face. She is a funny looking tortoise shell cat with a wide face and a smooshy pink nose. The second drawing in the center, is called, “ “Kirby in Bed with Hedgehog and Chick Fighting Over Worm”. Kirby is sitting in bed, looking down and reading a book with his head resting in his right hand. He has a big bushy brown beard and thick eyebrows. Most of his body is covered by a blue, floral duvet. On top of the duvet cover, on the right side of the drawing, is a little fuzzy brown hedgehog, facing right towards a small, yellow chick with pink talons. On the bed between them, is a squiggly pink worm. This drawing is based off a dream. And the third drawing on the right, is called “Momo, Yoko, and Willa III”, which is a drawing of 3 cats. Momo is a small black tuxedo cat with white paws that look like little slippers. To Momo’s right, is his sister, Yoko, who is also a black tuxedo cat. And Willa, is a tortoise shell cat with gray, tan, and brown speckles. — “Willa”; “Kirby in Bed with Hedgehog and Chick Fighting Over Worm”; “Momo, Yoko, and Willa”, all 2024, 7″ x 9″, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.

In this image, 3 drawings in white wooden frames hang on a light yellow wall. On the left, is a landscape drawing called, “Hummingbird Tongue”. Here, a blue green humming bird with a red chin pokes its beak and long tongue curling into a trumpet shaped flower. The second drawing in the center, is called “Dream of Peace Lily”. This is a vertical drawing of my naked breasts, with a giant peace lily emerging from my torso. And the third drawing on the right, is called “London Sniffs Cherry Blossoms”, where London is standing up on her hind legs to sniff a low hanging tree branch with bright pink cherry blossom leaves. — “Humming Bird Tongue”; “Dream of Peace Lily”; “London Sniffs Cherry Blossoms”, all 2024, 7″ x 9″, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.

In this image, 3 landscape drawings in white wooden frames hang on a light yellow wall. The first drawing on the left is, “London Butterfly”. In this drawing, two English Labrador Retrievers with bright orange butterfly wings emerging from their backs are flying over a body of water. Over the water there is a setting Sun, and a crescent moon in the sky. The second drawing in the center, is called, “Greenhouse Flowers”. This is a line drawing of plants in Wave Hill's greenhouse. Small clusters of blue and purple flowers foreground the scene, with potted and hanging leafy tropical plants taking center stage. An arch of greenhouse windows and roofline frames the image at the top. And the last drawing on the right, is, London and I in the Meadow”. At the bottom right corner of the drawing, Emilie and her dog London are curled up together on the ground. Tall trees encircle them in the background, giving the impression of a forest. — “London Butterfly”; “Greenhouse Flowers”; “London and I in the Meadow”, all 2024, 7″ x 9″, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.

In this image, 3 landscape drawings in white wooden frames hang on a light yellow wall. The first drawing on the left is called “Yellow Flowers with Bees”. A bundle of small yellow trumpet like flowers with dark green stems and leaves curl around them. Three fuzzy black and yellow striped bees Lightly hover over the flower’s petals. The drawing is very sketchy and whimsical. . The second drawing in the middle, is “Butterfly with Torch Flowers”, a pink butterfly is surrounded by a bundle of yellow, orange, and red flowers in the shape of pinecones. And the third drawing on the right is “Hot Magenta Flowers”, a drawing of bright hot pink flowers with many long, thin petals spreading out from the center. There is a lot of scribbly lines at the base of each flower to suggest tightly bundled leaves and stems. The flowers appear to be swaying a little. In this image, there are 3 drawings in white wooden frames hanging on a light yellow wall. — “Yellow Flowers with Bees”; “Butterfly with Torch Flowers”; “Hot Magenta Flowers”, all 2024, 7″ x 9″, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.

In this image, 2 drawings in white wooden frames hang on a light yellow wall. On the left, is a vertical drawing called “Bridge Over Stream”, in which a red wooden foot bridge stretches from the right side of the paper to the left side. Underneath it is a stream of turquoise blue water that stretches out towards the bottom of the paper. The drawing on the right, is a landscape drawing called, “Lily Pads in Water”, 7 green lily pads with light pink flowers float in a body of water that is turquoise blue. — “Bridge Over Stream”; “Lily Pads in Water”, both 2024, 7″ x 9″, ballpoint pen and crayon on paper.