I’ve recently been undertaking some research for a solo exhibition later this year. The proposed work is to be comprised of between 20 and 30 new pieces of work. The inspiration for the work is drawn from Welsh mythology and the world of fashion and also draws upon biblical references and our consumer culture.

I started my research by reading Phallic Panic by Barbara Creed as recommended by the Black One. Having pored of numerous art theory books in the past this was a refreshing read. It would perhaps normally be considered to be a Media Studies text rather than art theory as Creed uses films to explore her theories about the Uncanny and Horror.

Creed writes in a style that is easy to follow and through the use of repetition she makes her points really clear and easy to understand. Personally, I found it much easier to engage with Creed’s text than with many books on similar subjects that I’ve read in the past due to the use of films as points of reference. Of course she draws upon Freud for his work on the Uncanny, and Kristeva for her essays on the Abject and although I am familiar with these works it was fantastic to see Creed exploring the themes in her essay in the context of contemporary popular media.

As well as providing a fascinating discussion about the effect of the Uncanny in Horror Creed also providesa fantastic history of horror in film. She references well know films from the Alien trilogy to Interview with the Vampire as well as classic films such as Nosferatu and The Wolf Man.

Of particular interest to me, in the context of this new installation I’m working on, was her discussion about Womb Monsters and the Wolf-Man or Werewolf. I’m hoping that I’ll be able to convey some notion of the Abject and Uncanny through methods which are akin to the way in which both of these monsters unsettle us. The vision I have is one of bestial womb monsters that are created from disparate fragments of materials combined to unsettled spectators and remind them of our true nature, remind them that at the end of the day we are animals.

You can view some of my preliminary sketches for this project here on my Flickr pages. There’s still a long way to go yet though.
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