glitch addiction

OPENING RECEPTION: Friday, March 14, 5-7 pm at Open Studio.

standing outside I watch the purple glow peek through the crescent-shaped gap in the wall  
although it seems contained, I know it seeps out  
into the studio, into my skin 
sending undetectable reverberations towards me,  
I wish there were studies on exposure unit 
purple light 
therapy

Photographs of exposed photo emulsion, discarded ink-covered packing tape, and Dollarama contact paper serve as the point of departure for the postdigital aesthetic of Rachael Dodgson’s exhibition glitch addiction. Drawing connections between the analog mesh of a silkscreen, its illumination in the studio washout sink, and the “glow” of digital screens, Dodgson’s practice seamlessly intertwines printmaking and digital image-making. 

Informed by Legacy Russell’s Cyberfeminist manifesto, Glitch Feminism, and embodying a postdigital aesthetic, Dodgson fuses digital and analog means of making, utilizing the immersive characteristics of installation art alongside abstraction and text to shift the viewer’s perspective–both centering and de-centering their experience. Plastic, reflective, and iridescent, glitch addiction asks the viewer to participate in an assemblage of material fragments that are simultaneously comforting and awkwardly disorienting, set within an all-encompassing atmosphere.   

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Rachael Dodgson (she/her) is a screen-obsessed artist, arts educator, and cultural worker. Feeling anxious and using humor as a coping mechanism, Dodgson uses printmaking and abstraction to make bold assemblages of media and two-dimensional prints through a Postdigital framework. Dodgson holds an MFA from York University (2023) where she received a Graduate Fellowship Award and a BFA from Queen’s University. Dodgson has participated in solo and group exhibitions, community arts projects and attended residencies in Montreal, Massachusetts, and Berkley. Most notably Dodgson has exhibited her work at Open Studio Printmaking Centre, Collison, The Art Gallery of Mississauga, and Union Gallery. Dodgson’s work has been supported by exhibition assistance and creation grants from the Ontario Arts Council.  

Beyond artmaking, Dodgson maintains an active teaching practice at institutions such as Sheridan College, the Art Gallery of Ontario, Open Studio Printmaking Centre, and the Gardiner Museum.

Rachael Dodgson gratefully acknowledges funding support from the Ontario Arts Council through their Visual Art Creation grant and their Exhibition Assistance grant.