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    The porous rigid tissue of the pelvis consists of a matrix of collagen and inorganic salts
    Caption
    The porous rigid tissue of the pelvis consists of a matrix of collagen and inorganic salts, Sophie Mei Birkin, 2021, paraffin wax, pigment, plaster, PVC, LEDs, tape, polythene, oil paint, 32 x 130 x 75 cm

    ©the artist

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    Whale Fall (Installation view detail)
    Caption
    Whale Fall (Installation view detail), Sophie Mei Birkin, 2021, PETG, glass, PVC, Jesmonite, acrylic, 62 x 150 x 70 cm

    ©the artist

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    Whale Fall (Installation view detail)
    Caption
    Whale Fall (Installation view detail), Sophie Mei Birkin, 2021, PETG, PVC, polythene, matcha powder, oyster shell, tapioca, wax, (dimensions variable)

    ©the artist

  4. Previous Next
    Whale Fall (Installation view detail)
    Caption
    Whale Fall (Installation view detail), Sophie Mei Birkin, 2021, PETG, ceramic, acrylic, plaster, black lentils, hair gel, starch

    ©the artist

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    Set my teeth on edge
    Caption
    Set my teeth on edge, Sophie Mei Birkin, 2021, Jesmonite, acrylic, PETG, abalone shells, glass, 42 x 135 x 55 cm

    ©the artist

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    Protean Carcass
    Caption
    Protean Carcass, Sophie Mei Birkin, 2021, Polythene, glass wax, salt, LEDs plaster, ceramic, wax, glass, iridescent PVC, tape, PETG, acrylic, 40 x 170 x 62 cm

    ©the artist

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    My cataracts were found glazed in whale fat beaming into the deflated skin of the bedroom
    Caption
    My cataracts were found glazed in whale fat beaming into the deflated skin of the bedroom, Sophie Mei Birkin, 2021, Polyurethane foam, glass, latex, polythene, acrylic, varnish, stainless steel, salt, sugar, 64 x 180 x 32 cm - main body

    ©the artist

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    My cataracts were found glazed in whale fat beaming into the deflated skin of the bedroom (detail)
    Caption
    My cataracts were found glazed in whale fat beaming into the deflated skin of the bedroom (detail), Sophie Mei Birkin, 2021, polyurethane foam, glass, latex, polythene, acrylic, varnish, stainless steel, salt, sugar, 64 x 180 x 32 cm (main body)

    ©the artist

  9. Previous Next
    My cataracts were found glazed in whale fat beaming into the deflated skin of the bedroom (detail)
    Caption
    My cataracts were found glazed in whale fat beaming into the deflated skin of the bedroom (detail), Sophie Mei Birkin, 2021, polyurethane foam, glass, latex, polythene, acrylic, varnish, stainless steel, salt, sugar, 64 x 180 x 32 cm (main body)

    ©the artist

  10. Previous Next
    My cataracts were found glazed in whale fat beaming into the deflated skin of the bedroom (detail)
    Caption
    My cataracts were found glazed in whale fat beaming into the deflated skin of the bedroom (detail), Sophie Mei Birkin, 2021, polyurethane foam, glass, latex, polythene, acrylic, varnish, stainless steel, salt, sugar, 64 x 180 x 32 cm (main body)

    ©the artist

  11. Sophie Mei Birkin – MA/MFA

    Curriculum Vitae

    https://www.sophiemei.art/about

     

  12. Sophie Mei Birkin – MA/MFA

    Price List

    Prices on request, please contact the artist directly.

Sophie Mei Birkin – MA/MFA

Material exploration lies at the heart of my practice, particularly how materials can incite a psychophysical response. My work is concerned with reframing our relationship to the body, not just the human or animal body, but bodies that offer up hybrid alternatives to the subjective self.

I have a longstanding interest in the seabed as a site of protean transformation and my recent work centres on the phenomenon of ‘whale fall,’ when the carcass of a whale falls to the ocean floor creating a deep-sea ecosystem. My work explores fragments, elements removed from the wider context of the body, to create new speculative bodies from decomposing carcasses and the creatures that feed on them. Fragments speak to the life an element had before, whilst enabling disparate parts to meet and merge in new uncanny encounters.

Bio: Sophie Mei Birkin [b.1995] is a London based artist currently completing her MA in sculpture and contemporary art theory at the Slade School of Fine Art, where she has been awarded the Euan Uglow Scholarship. This year she has been awarded an Emerging Artist Award by Sarabande: The Lee Alexander McQueen Foundation. Her recent exhibitions include: Schemata: Vortex, a virtual exhibition by Corsica Studios and New Art City [2021], Icarus Blue, a live-streamed digital collaboration aired on Netil Radio [2021], London Grads Now at the Saatchi Gallery [2020] and 5 Hours at 42 Molton St [2020].