Murdock

NATALIE MURDOCK

Bio

Natalie Murdock was born in 1999 in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. In 2021, she graduated from Loyola University Chicago with a Bachelor of Arts in Drawing, Painting, and Printmaking.

Murdock has already been included in various exhibitions including the 2021 Student Juried Exhibition at the Ralph Arnold Gallery in Chicago, in which she was awarded third place. Furthermore, she was the 2019 recipient of the Jean Unsworth Scholarship for promising studio arts majors. Upcoming shows include Sensory Overload at the Ralph Arnold Gallery. Murdock currently lives and works in Chicago, Illinois.

Artist Statement

My work gives visual form to changes in interpersonal relationships. Accordingly, I manipulate domestic objects such as chairs, cushions, and mattresses in efforts to disrupt their conventional associations with stability and support. Interpersonal relationships have provided me with structure on a daily basis, a dynamic I find paralleled in the familiar comfort of the furniture in my living spaces. Unlike the permanence of these objects, however, the way I relate to myself and to others has been vulnerable to strain, rupture, and transformation across time. Such changes are captured in my work through the infliction of cuts, tears, and other alterations on the foundations of my objects. The resulting forms are inspired by patterns found in nature, typically in conversation with the remnants of the artificial, functional object. In addition, I often incorporate organic materials such as vines, sticks, and plant fibers that will be subject to further change over time. Much of the imagery in my work is inspired by my experience as a woman who has undergone both loss and growth from intimate relationships. Ultimately, my work holds space for the conflicting emotions I experience when faced with these changes, especially when what had once been a supportive dynamic becomes dysfunctional or depletive.

Natalie Murdock, Frayed Ends, 2020,
Found pillow, sticks, and thread, 25x25x6 in., Collection of the artist
Natalie Murdock, Chrysalis, 2021,
Spring mattress, upholstery foam, fabric, caulk, paint, rope, and preserved moss, 75x53x8 in., Collection of the artist