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val_sivilli_22working-doll22-muslin-mounted-on-stretchedcanvas_j24x30.jpg 
Val Sivilli • Shroud • 18×22 • Acrylic & Direct Printing on Muslin then mounted on canvas • 2023 
Val Sivilli • Grandma Barbaro Doll with phone chord 3 22×30, Charcoal on Arches 88 2023 
Val Sivilli • Grandma Barbaro Doll with phone chord 1 22×30, Charcoal on Arches 88 2023 
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val_sivilli_dolls-4_frottage-on-stitched-muslin-mounted-on-canvas_16x18jpg.jpg
I recently inherited a few large dolls from my mother that I could not bring myself to throw away. These dolls, combined with tools, bones, phone chords, useless pieces of tech have become the fuel for my current work evoking a bit of the fear we now have of feeling disconnected and replaced by digital tools as well as the fear of our own mortality. It is at the intersection of external forces – i.e. artificial intelligence, climate change, political unrest – with internal struggles – i.e. identity, substance abuse, family trauma – where I am steering my work. Many forces can combine to create a powerfully transformative image. I want to take this work far down that road.
Val Sivilli 