in pursuit of presence
(2024 - ongoing)
'in pursuit of presence' is an ongoing project made in response to research undertaken as part of my postgraduate degree in contemporary art and archaeology with the university of the highlands and islands. the overall project is made up of various smaller projects, as set out below, to form a body of work.
practice-based and theoretical research for the project explores ancestral lineage, narratives of women lost in the archives and the ways in which the ‘in-between’ of past and present can be materialised.
most recently works have explored the role of the post-medieval to early modern 'tie-on pocket' and its material contents as a storytelling tool. as a result, notions of accidental magic through ritual, healing and uncovering have begun to unfold.
sanctum sanctorum (in small things forgotten)
(2025)
stones collected from ancestral rivers, dried chrysanthemums, bird bones, willow leaves, found wool, paper clay, hag stone, dried mugwort
restricted breath
(2024)
installed as part of the light work exhibition with zest collective
tower house, winkle street, southampton
a sculpture composed of steel boning, rust, sheep’s wool, flax, hair, lace, dried plant matter, displayed on a terracotta tile found in the river itchen
exhibition text:
restricted breath’ has been created as part of my ongoing postgraduate research project ‘in pursuit of presence’. through research-led explorations, the project attempts to uncover lost histories within the context of female intergenerational narratives.
whilst holding space for my experience of maternal absence, I attempt to grasp and connect the historic lives of the women within my maternal lineage who have spent more than four hundred years inhabiting the hampshire landscape.
formed as a result of following the hazy trails carved within the archives, I utilise fragments of symbolic fibres, textiles and organic matter to reflect upon the overarching notion of centuries of female stifling.
weaving, wrapping and tying materials that are contrastingly malleable and rigid onto a structure made of rusty corset boning presents a vessel which embodies a tangible offering of connection to my ancestors, whose presence barely survives, whilst reimagining the structural element of a garment that characterises the restriction and suppression of their lives.
with thanks to the curtis museum alton, jane hurst, portsmouth history centre, hampshire record office, southampton city archives and local studies and southampton bereavement services for their help in piecing together my research so far.
