Jo Cope
Through her interdisciplinary and conceptually led practice Jo Cope has carved out a niche for herself focused on our cultural relationship with shoes.
All humans take a journey through life, and it is this concept of the shoe as a philosophical vessel to express aspects of the human condition that Cope is interested in.
Working with adapted traditional shoemaking techniques she creates contemporary sculptural artworks which inhabit a world between design and art practice.
Cope communicates through many different mediums including: craft, film, performance, photography and installations. She also explores the wider viewpoint of the feet and the act of walking. Originally from a fashion background; fundamental to the evolution of her work
has been the questioning of disciplinary and object boundaries. Her desire is to continue to break new ground has lead to an expanded practice often explored in contemporary art spaces.
Cope’s shoes exist as visual metaphors, a tool used within art and cognitive therapies to aid mental processing and self reflection. Through her human centered approach she often explores the lived experiences of herself and others, as a woman she is interested in highlighting feminist themes and promoting female empowerment as well as developing social practice based projects and collaborations.
Jo is interested in encouraging a deeper look at the power that might be hidden in our feet and their potential to impact positive thoughts and actions, as well as exploring the gallery environment as a cathartic space for healing, inspiration and self-reflection.
Her educational background includes a Masters with distinction in Fashion Artefacts from the London College of Fashion. She was invited to represent the university at the Material Movement Gala at Sadler’s Wells Theatre in 2017 and was commissioned to create a commemorative handkerchief to celebrate 100 years of the suffragette movement at Buckingham Palace alongside names including Sarah Lucas and Mona Hatoum in 2018.
Cope explores fashion’s wider role in art and society, including that of a tool for social activism. In 2021, she worked with Graduate Fashion Foundation and Shelter Charity to set up the first ‘Fashion for Social Change’ Award. She is also a part time educator and guest speaker at universities internationally, where she seeks to inspire and pass on her unique creative perspectives.
Cope has curated exhibitions for London Craft Week, The Shoes Have Names project being one. This collaboration was inspired by the personal experiences of people facing homelessness. Ten shoemakers/artists were each paired with a person that Shelter helped through its frontline services. This project won the Global Footwear Award for Social Impact in 2023.
Cope’s work has been exhibited in prestigious museums and galleries internationally including The Museum of Decorative Arts Paris in 2019. Recent projects include: The Feminist Rose at The Garden Museum London 2022 and Walking on Water at The Venice Design Biennale 2021.
Cope is a dyslexic artist and a neurodiversity ambassador for Design Nation UK. She believes that her neurodiversity is a key attribute to her practice, describing her work as ‘A Powerful Visual Language’. In 2021 she was invited by Amazing Dyslexia to be one of the celebrated creative faces of dyslexia outside the Design Museum London.
For exhibitions loans and enquiries info@jocope.com
