Artist Residency: PADA Studios and Gallery, Barreiro, Portugal
October 2021

The installation ‘ Capture’, was created as a conduit for the wind and the sun; an instrument to illuminate the existence of the invisible. After decades of wear and decay, the walls that once housed a paint factory stand alone, without a roof to protect its interior. The space is open to the sky above and welcomes the natural elements. 

I chose to hang lengths of thick fishing rope and clothing line, referencing materials found in the towns along the Tagus River. The cord is tied to the walls, and woven back and forth across the room. 

The lightweight plastic sheets, originally used to catch paint and protect the studio floors, is given a new task when tied to the rope. It becomes awoken by the wind. When a small gust enters the space, it is filled like a sail, and begins swaying and whirling uncontrollably, capturing her dance. 

Under the Portuguese sun, the hanging sheets of plastic and found line of plastic tape (baring the local town’s name), cast shadows below. The old walls become both the backdrop and the stage for the shadow characters that move with the wind and transform throughout the day. They record the passing of time as the sun moves across the sky. 

Capture, 2021
Sarah Delaney

Site-specific installation, TINCO Paint Factory
Found and repurposed materials, rope, close pins