127/323 (Biological Clock Prototype), 2016Styrofoam, plywood, steel, socks, acrylic paint, adhesive, monofilament
102" X 48" In this work I explore the ways that internal desires and external influences shape self-concept. I consider the influential and transformative nature of shame on my own notion of femininity. Throughout their lives, women ovulate an average of 450 times - each a potential opportunity to become pregnant. This sculpture chronicles the passing of biological time, representing 323 lost opportunities I have had to become a mother - the ovulations I have had from my first menstruation until the specific date of public display in the gallery space (November 4th, 2016) - and suspended above those missed chances are the 127 ovulations I have remaining until menopause begins. Our identities are shaped through both lived and missed experiences. This installation embodies my absent maternal experience: the relentless and breakneck passing of time, my deep seated feelings of loss, regret, and helplessness, and the irresolution - and inevitably changing potential - of my role as a woman. |