Susan Collis Makes a Mess

Susan Collis, Down to the Mother, 2008. Inlaid mother of pearl, dimensions variable. Photos: 16 Miles







Did someone spill milk on the floor of the Ingleby Gallery in Edinburgh? Has paint been splattered across the wooden boards with wanton disregard for the Iran do Espírito Santo on display in the room? Thankfully, no. Those marks are tiny slices of mother of pearl that have been worked into the panels of the floor. It's a permanent installation called Down to the Mother, 2008, a permanent installation by Susan Collis, who forges quotidian objects out of luxurious materials: she composed a 2007 sculpture that resembles a screw with coral, white gold, diamond, and silver, for instance. It's collector swag, certainly, but there's just enough mystery (and more than enough craftsmanship), to make it a smart piece — a bold move on the part of the gallery.