jill’s zoo
On Saturday May 15th the Wilhelmine Project will excitedly welcome its first exhibit into the space: Jill’s Zoo by the talented Jill Usdan, aka SpudKing. The exhibit consists of a series of line drawings of animals whose textures are brought to life through the use of numbers.
We’re loving the elegant simplicity of these drawings and the tension between the natural world of the animals and the rigidity that the numbers represent.
In advance of the exhibit, we had a chance to catch up with Jill:
Tell me about all things Jill Usdan.
I am New York City, born and raised. My main passion has always been acting, but I freelance as a photographer as well under the name SpudKing, which is also how I sign most of my drawings. SpudKing is the name of a potato I drew a few years ago who had quite a personality, and I’ve since ascribed the name to anything I make (whether it be a photograph or drawing) to give it my personal stamp.
Why numbers + animals?
I have always loved animals. Growing up, between my sister and I, we had hamsters, fish, birds, a ferret and even an iguana. I remember wanting the iguana so badly that at age ten I wrote an essay for my parents that detailed the habits of iguanas and why I loved them so much. As for numbers, I’ve always been bad at math. But I love these drawings because they’re my chance to appreciate the simple architecture of each number, and use that as a structure to express the shape of each creature. It has been amazing to find how seemingly cold numbers can bring out such personality in a living thing.
Tell me about your favorite drawing from the exhibit.
I love them all equally, as any parent would, but the one that has taught me the most so far is the snake. Originally I had planned to shade the snake’s body with numbers, like the other drawings, but I suddenly realized that I just wanted to have him be very black and thin and rich, and use the numbers to create the texture of his tree. So that was the first time I broke my initial set of rules for these drawings, then I played with having the numbers come a little bit outside the lines of the tree, which created a moss effect. I was very happy with the outcome and it was important to learn that it came from creating a strong structure for myself, that I could eventually break when I was ready and the work called for it.
What do you hope people will take out the work?
I hope people will look at these drawings and smile when see each animal’s personality, and when they find themselves studying the numbers as a child would, delighted by the solving of a maybe unsolvable puzzle.
How does your acting relate to your drawings?
My drawing strengthens my acting by reinforcing the importance of trust; trusting the medium, it’s structure and above all, my creativity. While drawing all of these pictures, I had a moment of “don’t mess up!” and then I would say to myself “okay Jill, mess up!” When I allow myself that, my inner SpudKing comes through and the drawing turns out wonderfully — and I’m having fun! The same goes for acting; you have to be willing to get messy with your inner fire.
Jill’s Zoo will be at the Wilhelmine Project from May 15th – June 5th. The Wilhelmine Project is in the window of the store at 203 E 4th Street between Ave A and B.
