Summary
Through my research and studio practice, I search for what binds me and separates
me from my children.
I investigate abjection theories through Julia Kristeva and Georges Bataille
and focus on a particular form I call the maternal abject. This occurs at the
time an infant separates from its mother, acquires language and maps its own
body. I am proposing that the mapping of the body is the point at which an individual
perceives social structures and learns about prohibitions and taboos, hence
the abject. I also investigate the relationship between the maternal abject
and the artistic process through the writings of Kristeva. Abjection is illustrated
through the works of Mona Hatoum, Fiona Hall, Hieronymus Bosch, and Paul Quinn.
The maternal abject is illustrated through the works of Mary Kelly, Cindy Sherman,
Frida Kahlo, Louise Bourgeois. A possible reading of the maternal abject is
given through the works of Gregory Crewdson, and Joel-Peter Witkin.
The studio work called "The Maternal
Abject" is in two parts. The first part is a series of layered photomedia
images. The layers consist of a naked female body, which has been merged with
Renaissance like Madonna and Child images. Texture, such as stones and spikes,
is embedded to signify the fragility and strength of the body. Children are
also present and are merged with the adult female body. All images are cradled
in a darkened atmosphere in order to draw the viewer inside the images. The
second part is a bassinet, which has been drilled and pierced by thousands of
pearl-headed steel pins. This piece signifies the dichotomy of the motherhood
experience, which on the one hand is rewarding and fulfilling and on the other
an abject and isolating experience of no apparent economic value. The two parts
interact so that the bassinet piece with its threatening exterior acts as an
aggressor towards the photomedia images.
©2001 Mireille Astore