Celeste Coury
BA (Hons) Fine Art
Coury is a UK-based artist working between many mediums, from bookbinding to woodwork, graphic design to abstracted mark making. Coury aims to convey a new form of spirituality and personal expression through every brush stroke. She challenges the structure of religious art, attempting to update the way we relate to and create religious artwork, whilst highlighting the spiritual environment she believes already exists within the gallery setting.
Coury’s ‘Innate Spirit’ Series (2022) exhibition work comprises of two hand-bound and hand-painted books, alongside two arched, architectural and abstract paintings, and is part of a larger body of work. The brush strokes within the works convey transcendental, innate and expressive movement through the physical mediums, whilst the physical encasing of the marks represent religious scripture and historical architectural qualities of religious institutions. The works draw on Coury’s themes of ‘New Religious Iconography’, challenging preconceived notions and finding spirituality within the gallery setting.
The vast collection of works created by Coury engage with artists that include Conner, Cross, Byers, Viola and M. Dudek in an amalgamation of concepts and materialism. The transcendental nature of her work creates a more widely representative personal experiential version of modern religious artwork. The religious, archetypical themes are explored through the use of visually apocalyptic materials and passionate impressions wrapped up within iconographic frameworks.
Spirit, depth, obscurity and contrast of religious understandings are interrogated through modernised iconography, explored through shredded hosiery, liquid gold, layers of paint, inks, broken ceramics and pre-worn jewellery. The materials embellish one another, they comment on personal relationships tackling transcendental concepts, whilst plucking sculptural and decorative techniques from historical artworks.
Works shown:
Celeste Coury
She/her
‘Innate Spirit’ Series
Architectural, sculptural paintings that float alongside handcrafted books conveying a modern form of transcendental and personal religious iconography.
Acrylic on wood board with canvas, hosiery, wire, steel, liquid gold leaf, ink, string, staples, nails.
Varying paper types painted, crushed velvet cover with gold foil embossing
2 X 7ft x 4ft
