We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful GiGi Bennett. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with GiGi below.

GiGi, appreciate you joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

There is a lot of pressure placed on the idea of making meaningful art. I find it is very easy to get caught up in this pressure, overload a project with meaning, and as a result, create art that lacks direction. I was in that position in the early stages of my graduate program at Pennsylvanian Academy of the Fine Arts. I found myself cramming themes of feminism, motherhood, childhood memories, family dynamics, and more into one single painting. After receiving many mixed responses during critiques, I decided to simplify my focus. I realized that most of these concepts overlapped and essentially boiled down to an overarching theme of domestic life.

I took this one concept of domestic life, and ran with it, finding my own voice and my own meaning within it. Reflecting on this topic and its presence in my life led me to concentrate on the fragility and vulnerability found within domestic space. This began with the construction of small scale house sculptures made of water soluble paper and thread, colored pencil drawings of these delicate doll house like forms, and video pieces of the small sculptures in natural environments. All of these creations further led to my most meaningful project yet – a model of my childhood home made mostly of cardboard and paper and based solely on my memory of the space.

I spent most of my final year of graduate school working on this project, and ended up with a thesis show that centered on the house sculpture. Included in the show was a multimedia film of the house entitled Down the Hall, To Your Right & Back to the Ocean, a series of colored pencil drawings that featured objects from the sculpture and my childhood, and a handmade book with photographs of the sculpture. I chose not to display the house sculpture itself, because I wanted it to feel like a memory of something that once was.

In choosing to simplify my artistic direction, I ended up with a project with more meaning than I had imagined, and with a clear concept.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I am a multidisciplinary artist and animator living and working in New Jersey. In 2019, I received my BFA in Animation & Motion Media from Lesley University College of Art & Design. I have participated in exhibitions and film festivals including Mon Oeil Online Series with Centre Pompidou, Paris, and Les Femmes Underground Film Festival in Los Angeles. This past May 2023, I graduated from Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts with an MFA. Since graduating, I have been working on small-scale sculpture, colored pencil drawings, and multimedia films with a focus on the beauty and vulnerability of domestic life.

I have always taken a strong interest in art. As long as I can remember, I have been drawing, painting, sewing, and trying new crafts. Naturally, art was the only thing I wanted to study in college. My first two years of college, I studied fine arts, and took many intro level drawing and painting courses. Although I had many inspiring professors and classmates, I craved more of a challenge. I decided to transfer schools and change my major to animation. I entered Lesley University as a junior who had never animated before, working alongside classmates who had at least two years of animation experience. I certainly got the challenge I was seeking, and greatly strengthened my artistic practice as a result. Animation provided me a platform to bring all of my skills across mediums to one creative space. Adding the element of time and movement into my practice for the first time felt like a magical experience, and changed the way I see my work.

Because you can animate in any medium, I developed a habit of thoroughly considering what medium would work best for each new project I began, considering concept, aesthetics, and practicality. I believe this mindset is what ultimately led to my current multistep and multidisciplinary studio practice. Most recently, this process has begun with small scale sculpture of domestic architecture. My film, Down the Hall, to Your Right & Back to the Ocean, began with the construction of a dollhouse sized model of my childhood home based entirely on my own flawed memory of the house. The empty areas seen in both the interiors and exterior of the house sculpture, and the monochromatic palette in each room speak to memory as an inaccurate and highly subjective source of information. The model was made out of frail materials such as cardboard, paper, and thread to emphasize its fragility.

Once the sculpture is complete, I move onto the drawing, photography and film aspects of my practice, working simultaneously on each. I build ethereal worlds when I make still life setups with the sculptures, patterned fabrics, childhood photographs, flowers, fragments of plants and other trinkets. I carefully pin these objects up on a cork board with straight pins and thumbtacks to make them appear as though they are just barely held together, reiterating the sense of vulnerability found in domestic spaces as well as the process of memory. With a soft touch, minimal contrast, and a limited color palette, I then make small, intimate images that capture the memory of these objects. The drawings, like many of the objects within them, serve as a desperate attempt to hold onto something with an inevitable fate of fading away.

Throughout the entire process, I document the life of the sculptures through photographs and the moving image. Both serve as another effort to document and preserve an object in a specific moment in time. I collage old photographs from my childhood into the images in somewhat withdrawn ways to give the sense that there are memories heavily embedded in these spaces, but as to not make the images too personal or specific. Any images that include figures will only show a small portion of the figure such as the feet or one hand.

The video practice, a combination of live action and animation, work primarily to personify the house. My childhood home becomes a character brought to life by the lives once lived within the space. The house breathes in and out, connecting with the wind of the outside world, and flashing memories of the past now ingrained into the walls.

My choice to work in a variety of mediums speaks to the many ways in which we attempt to preserve objects, moments, and memories no matter how apparent their temporality. Altogether, this body of work expresses the reality of the insecurities that exist in our homes, reveals the flaws of memory, and attempts to preserve what is left of my own strung together memories of childhood.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

For me, the most rewarding aspect of being an artist is having the ability to bring a intangible thought that exists in my head into fruition. To know that the physical pieces of art that I create were once just an idea sometimes feels like a super power.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can provide some insight – you never know who might benefit from the enlightenment.

One thing I think non-creatives struggle to understand about a creative person’s journey is exactly how specific, personal, and often nonlinear the journey can be. I have experienced so many non-creative people make strong, confident suggestions as to what they feel I should do with my career or what kind of art they think I should make without caring to understand my art practice, and the goals that go along with it. I think it should be kept in mind that most artists and creatives are producing deeply meaningful and unique work, and that doesn’t always necessarily fit neatly into a mold. I don’t mean to suggest that conversations can’t be held between a non-creatives and creatives about career goals. I just think there needs to be more consideration towards the creatives’ wants and needs, and an understanding that a creative’s path is often not very straightforward.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.gigibennettportfolio.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gigibennettart/
• Other: https://vimeo.com/user80506151