Confined by Copper

2021
Copper Lillies & Shelf: Chyna-Lily
B+W Photography: Emily Rietveld
Book Design: Hugo Rikard-Bell
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"Copper wire restricting my waist,
suffocating my organs,
my breath is short,
my hands are weak,
and I am still."



Consider the Lilies

2020
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‘Consider the Lillies’ explores the representation of Indigenous women throughout art history. Erotic imagery of indigenous women was produced by colonial Pākehā men upon traveling to the pacific islands. These images not only created a misrepresentation of culture, but they also showed the women as being exotic and ‘other.’ For women to be accepted they felt they needed to be thin and pale. Flowers have a history of being compared to feminine beauty and here the lily has been used. I am using photographic techniques to create new representations of contemporary women.



Bloom

2020
Location: Clearview

‘Bloom’ Depicts two large scale photographic prints of an abstracted body installed in Massey’s Clearview space accompanied by a peace lily flower surrounded by dark green leaves as it sits in soil. I have used this work to explore identity and beauty as it ages. The plant represents life, peace & femininity, as the flower wilts, she changes shape. This work invites us to observe how the plant adjusts to the abrupt environmental change.