In 2022 I made a series of collages from a 1929 Ladies Home Journal and a 2014 issue of The Gentlewoman. The content of these magazines, with more than 80 years between them, revealed a continued pre-occupation with measuring the value of women in society. Today, our media ecosystem continues to perpetuate this idea. Women are held which adjudicate our worth.
How does media representation contribute to conformity? How are women disempowered by conforming? How do I, personally, move in a world such as this? If I remove all descriptions of my body can I recreate a different self?
Exploring these questions through collage is a way of processing my own experiences as an aging woman with supposed diminishing utility to society. So of course, for a person who has rarely stood in front of a camera, who shies away from any attention, I dove into the discomfort of being photographed for the purpose of creating collage fodder!
I was thrilled to receive a grant to fund the development of source materials with which to make new collages. The grant allowed me to engage artist and educator Joachim Froese as a mentor. I was also able to engage emerging photographer, Kimberley Marston to co-create the photographs as source materials.
This first stage of the project is pretty much complete and the next stage is about reviewing the images and playing with this rich source of material.
Thanks to Joachim for his kindness and generosity. Thanks to Kim for working with me on making the source photography.
This project was made possible with funding from the City of Moreton Bay's Regional Arts Development Fund Quick Response Continue Creating grant.
