Embodying Entanglement
Embodying Entanglement is a solo exhibition at Margaret Lawrence Gallery showcasing works from Vanessa Godden’s practice-led PhD project. The artworks in this exhibition depict how material engagements with the body narrate personal histories of sexual assault and racism. It presents embodied trauma as processual, wherein videos, handmade books, and live performances depict various organic materials—such as curry, flour, chilli, pomegranate, eggshells, and hair—cyclically filtered through the body. From table manners gone awry to items evocative of childhood nostalgia (a flip book and private diary) the performative artworks in Embodying Entanglement allude to the deeply personal ways in which Godden’s trauma is embodied.
Over the course of the exhibition, I performed three key artworks, 'Bite Your Tongue', 'Cartography', and 'Purge'. 'Bite Your Tongue' was performed of opening night of the exhibition, 'Cartography' was performed the second day of the exhibition, and 'Purge' was performed on the third. The material detritus was left in the gallery space for the remainder of the exhibition to serve as sensory hauntings.
This exhibition comprises part of the Victorian College of the Arts School of Art PhD Program. The thesis that accompanies this artwork can be found here: Embodying Entanglement