Linda Cassels is an artist originating from South Africa and currently practicing in the UK. Cassels has utilised the discipline of art over the previous four years as a vehicle of self-expression and works across a wide range of mediums, including, but not limited to: photography, performance, sculpture, painting, and printmaking.
Cassel's work is primarily motivated by the human experience and politics, with her artwork often embodying how political decisions have impacted her or the people around her. Our Social Services is Cassel's most recent take on the recent political circumstances in the UK.
In the image, we see two wine glasses overlaying a black background, with the right hand being stood up and completely unscathed, and the other being partially shattered, toppled, and on its side. Surrounding the broken glass are what appear to be smaller fragments of glass, but upon closer inspection, are in fact various gems, stones, and pieces of jewellery. These have been scattered across the image, which suggests that the cause of the break was high impact. In the reflection of the glasses, it is possible to make out the shapes of windows, as well as some forms of the photographer, most likely Cassels herself.
It is possible to deduce from the title that the wine glasses represent the social services within the UK, and their state represents their ability to withstand the pressure of outside forces and recent circumstances. Therefore, Our Social Services is a direct critique of how the facilities our government has provided have not received sufficient support and are suffering as a consequence. Interestingly, Cassels has chosen to use the gems, stones, and pieces of jewellery as a means to suggest that the wineglasses are more irreplaceable than they seem. Fittingly, the NHS is often described as a jewel on the crown of the UK, and by limiting or reducing its funding, a sacred component of the UK's health infrastructure is at grave risk, ultimately inhibiting or denying a significant portion of its citizens the right to basic healthcare. Thus, the impact of the glasses breakage, suggested by the scattering of the jewels, is a direct reference to the impact its breakage will have.
Interestingly, Cassels has decided to depict one of the two glasses in perfect condition. This could be done to highlight the contrast between the original and broken glasses or to suggest a before-and-after shot of the condition of the NHS as a result of COVID-19. Alternatively, the intact glass may be a suggestion of other social services that are yet to come and will fall victim to a domino effect. The position of this glass is high and proud, with visual connotations synonymous with grandeur, wealth, or celebration, implying that those who are currently unaffected by recent circumstances are just as vulnerable as those who have already been severely impacted. The riches that maintain the composition of the broken glasses convey the idea that regardless of who you are and how you have been affected, you as an individual are highly valuable.
Finally, the reflection of the domestic environment and herself in the wine glasses is what I consider to be a direct reference to not only Cassels’ personal experience, and how she sees herself reflected in the events of 2020, but also to depict the environments in which we all live and have in common. For the most part, the impacts of political decision-making are made and felt in the homes of those who are subjugated.
"There is a futility to the deafness of the government to look at the existing problems we have and how their spending cuts have contributed to this state that all social services are finding themselves in."
Our Social Services is an embodiment of our current political climate and a visual manifestation of economic mismanagement, ultimately resulting in the tension, pressure, and finally collapse of infrastructure, which we take for granted on a daily basis. Additionally, this artwork is seen through the lens of an artist who has an objective perspective on the way the UK is run as a result of her experience under her original nation. This perspective is reflected (literally) through her use of photography and ability to capture the environment in which her work is conceived and created.
Website: www.lindacasselsgallery.com
Instagram: @sarahlindac