Aritst Phoebe Collings-James’ print draws from the netted mask worn in her 16mm film Mother Tongue, Mother Master (2018). In the moving image work, the mask bound the artist’s mouth and face — constraining her voice while rendering the body hyper-visible. Sound persisted, suggesting both rupture and resistance.

Isolated in print, the netting becomes a charged residue. The figure is no longer present, yet its imprint lingers. The mesh reads simultaneously as barrier, armour and trace; a structure that restricts but also records.

The work reflects Phoebe Collings-James’ wider exploration of the poetics and emotional debris of violence. Across her practice, containment and desire exist in tension; vulnerability and agency are inseparable. Here, the absent body is felt rather than seen, evoking lived experience within hostile environments while refusing silence.

Produced in a limited edition of 100, the print offers a concentrated meditation on voice, constraint and embodied resistance.

Learn more about artist Phoebe Collings-James