This work began as an installation at my exhibition Dead Beauty to demonstrate the process behind the creation of the shroud image. Seeing the body of the magpie upset one lady in particular who stated that animal’s spirit was being disrespected. I wished I had the opportunity to speak to her about it as I wondered if the stretching out of his wings had been the most upsetting. When I moved the shroud installation to a new site only suitable for less abominable decompositions, such as birds and small rodents, there was another complaint due to the nearby creche and an inquisitive child. This new site is conveniently outside my studio under a majestic healthy eucalyptus tree who I hope bleeds sap generously and possums and birds defecate from regularly. This is my first shroud at this new site. I love the result and hope to build up a collection of smaller shrouds for those who prefer to see the images unstretched. I prefer the practicality of a stretched work. Maybe I could even push it with some fish and reptiles although large mammals would be out of the question as I am sure there would be louder complaints. I am yet to create a large installation site in the bush for ambitious tarpaulin works.
Category: Studio Practice
coastal shrouds on paper
I found a dead black snake on the way to Booderee and thought of my illustrations for Pauline McLeod about the Little Black Snake who conquers the giant goannas and becomes poisonous by stealing their poison. I placed the partly decomposed snake (nayin) on canvas to continue disintegration. I also placed shrimp leftover from my dad’s fishing trip with my kids. It would be better to stretch the paper first in my sacred waterhole.
Abjection in Theory and Art
The definition of abject art on the Tate website notes, “In practice the abject covers all the bodily functions, or aspects of the body, that are deemed impure or inappropriate for public display or discussion.” The definition on the Keterrer Kunst website begins by stating, “Abject art is an art form associated with Material and Object art, and refers to works, which contain abject subjects, materials and substances.” Julia Kristeva posited the term abject in her essay on abjection Powers of Horror first published in French in 1980 and English in 1982. She introduces abjection as “Loathing an item of food, a piece of filth, waste, or dung.” (2PH). Most contemporary artists working with abjection focus on the human body, often their own as Performance art or Body art became a common way for artists to actively assimilate the abject in front of an audience.
Dead Beauty Exhibition
I have an exhibition on in the Foyer Gallery of the School of Art this week.
It consists of 20 raw shrouds stretched onto wooden frames and sized with rabbit skin glue and a shroud in process outside featuring a magpie. My artist statement:
The decomposition print or shroud is a bodily stain that captures the rapid breaking down of the body after death. This is a process shared by human and non-human animals reminding us of our mortality and animality. Rotting flesh is repulsive to our sensory organs and taboo in our hypoallergenic society. The notion of the abject or abhorrent in art challenges our distinction between object and subject. An object is perceived as a thing used for a purpose, a subject is one who has agency and rights we can identify with. The representation of animals is a contentious issue at a time when the modern perception of animal as object is being challenged. In my work I experience the assimilation of the abject, the rancid object, a dead body, becomes a subject as I capture the essence of individual disintegrating forms and present them in a painting format to be venerated.
2nd Spring shroud set
It was a very windy cold day for summer and we arrived at the farm to see Steven and Tony. We had the trailer as we had decided to pack up the installation with the idea of setting it up on top of Tumbarumba Mountain. A long time ago we bought shares in the land to save it from logging so it is original forest with large gums. I intend to include more plant matter on these next sets over summer.
The second spring set was exquisite. It had been left for 6 weeks in storms and wind and the colourful birds had melted with their feathers neatly placed. I would have liked to have sewn them on, but it would have to be done on site as they would fall apart, another reason for Tumbarumba as it is a great camping spot to spend time. We could set up a processing area too using eucalyptus and having a line undercover so I do not have to process on my washing line at home. If there was a small shed installed I could have bodies drying out inside too.
One of the possum pairs had been stained a beautiful yellow from the tree and I imagined a lot more staining in a eucalyptus forest.
Setting up a 2nd Spring set
Dad and I found a king parrot in perfect condition down the coast and he wrapped it for me like it was being stored for taxidermy to keep the feathers neat. My new friend Francis gave me a rosella and a crested pigeon found in Canberra and the other Canberran animals were 4 possums, sadly some big males looking for love, and 3 magpies which I find regularly.
Collection and processing the first spring shrouds
Tepi, Adam and I visited Tony on the farm and encountered the ewe, lambs and echidna post-decomposition. the ewe was still full of maggots, but we removed it anyway and Adam used the steel rake to drag the putrid body away from the shroud site. It was a very smelly visit, and Tepi complained of the smell. Adam and I persisted in the heat and wind, it was very hard work.We left the ewe shroud to dry out and at home I processed the 3 lambs and the echidna in vinegar.
fish shroud
I am experimenting with my first fish shroud using pilchards on watercolour paper. I have installed the work in progress at mum and dad’s on the coast.
Spring lambs
There have been many births on Tony and Steven’s sheep farm, but also death as some lambs and ewes don’t make it. Often its the crows pecking out the eyes of the weak or in distress, or there are difficult births such as a set of large triplets, two made it out while the ewe died with the third inside. the twins subsequently died. Ewes will sometimes abandon their lamb too and Steven and Tony raise as many of the orphan lambs by bottle feeding as they can. Their neighbor’s are helping too.
The dear sweet forms of the newborn lambs are often so slight. Another dead pregnant ewe was very heavy with the baby inside, the blood streaming out of her eyes show her death was caused by the crows blinding her.
While macabre, placing the lamb suckling her also commemorates her motherly state in death and attempts to reflect the time of death, spring lambing as the weather becomes warmer.
Chough and Starling
It was the dirty end of winter when I went with Adam and Tepi out to the farm for the chough and starling to be placed on a canvas together.
Tepi had found the starling on the farm, while I had encountered the chough dieing by the roadside amidst morning traffic. His kin surrounded him calling in distress. I moved him away from further damage under a tree and the next day found him dead.
Birds print so beautifully, their feathers being conducive to ‘drawn’ edges and a clean silhouette.
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