Zina Swanson

Swanson’s work, encompassing both painting and sculpture, is known for investigating and interrogating the relationships between humans, their surrounding environments and the natural world. For Luck consists of a large site-specific tiled sculpture, reminiscent of bathroom décor, which provides the backdrop for several smaller sculptures and a series of works on paper. The natural materials in the works, including the four leaf clover, thistle seeds, acorns and a wishbone, all link to various rituals associated with luck. 

In the 2013 exhibition No Need for Water, produced during her year as the Frances Hodgkins Fellow, Swanson investigated the strange relationships between human and plants through a range of watercolour paintings, plant specimens and domestic furnishings. One of these watercolours was Marble Kisses, which showed a domestic exterior space comprised of white marble tiles. The clean, subtle and minimalist aesthetic seen in this work has been taken further in the new exhibition For Luck.