CAROLS SCREW FLOWERS | STACEY LEE WEBBER

The practice of Stacey Lee Webber (Indianapolis, 1982) involves manipulating everyday objects, pushing them to the limits of their recognizability, dismantling stereotypes and disciplined uses of the objects themselves. Take, for example, a group of screws, which in Webber’s work could transform into a bouquet of flowers.
This is the case of Carols Screw Flowers (2020), a piece that is part of the Standard of Living series. The artist made a precise and deliberate choice regarding the technique and material used: through the manipulation of brass screws – forged, molded, oxidized – the artist wanted to pay homage to the pride of blue collar’s manual labor in the American working class. Each bouquet in the series is composed of celebratory flowers and is a unique piece.

Carols Screw Flowers also represents a perfect example of how art can transform sensory experience. Unlike a traditional bouquet, Webber’s work captures attention with its unusual composition: flowers created with soldered brass screws play with the viewer’s perceptions and senses, engaging touch, smell, and sight.
While a real bouquet feels pleasant to the touch of the fingers due to the delicacy of the petals and the softness of the stems, the grooved, metallic surfaces of the screws instead convey strength and solidity.
The olfactory experience undergoes a transformation too: here, the air around the artwork is not filled with the sweet, fragrant scent of flowers; instead, a slight metallic and industrial smell is perceived.
Lastly, color is another aspect that clearly distinguishes Webber’s work from its real counterpart. While natural flowers captivate the eye with their vibrancy and variety of colors, the buds of Carols Screw Flowers stand out for their uniform tone. Brass and bronze shine with a brilliance that certainly does not fade or wither, giving the work a timeless atmosphere that, however, cannot enchant as much as that of a real bouquet.

Stacey Lee Webber invites us to look at the world around us with an unbiased eye and reminds us that art can hide even in the most unexpected objects and in the most unusual forms, without losing its grip on the everyday, on routine, and on the narrative of the present time.

Stacey Lee Webber
Carols Screw Flowers, 2020
Soldered brass screws and fabricated bronze vase, 17,8 x 17,8 x 33 cm (7” x 7” x 13”)
© Stacey Lee Webber, courtesy the artist

14/02/2024