SPACE 1 : POLLY HOLLYOAK

Exhibition dates. 15 - 26 June 2022
Opening Reception : Thur 16 June 2022, 6:00 - 8.30pm.

lovED

They say ‘there are no words’ ..... these are the words that are reached for when we struggle to engage with those who have lovED and lost. It’s a phrase used all too often as we grapple with the aftermath of the death of a lovED one – these words fill the exchanges between those who are mourning the loss and those who come seeking to offer some form of comfort, be it a presence or an embrace. These words accompany what are often awkward encounters and once utterED, the deafening awkward silences as we all search for meaning.

While they say ‘there are no words’, following the tragic and untimely loss of my son ED, I find myself in a place where in fact words are all that remain. The sheer overwhelming crushing weight of grief which is palpable on the chest as I breathe and the accompanying sense of loss, finds me in a place where I have been reducED to single words to externalise the internal. What you see here is where I live, with this body of work representing the externalisation of an internal world - one characterised by fatigue, loss, and isolation. While these singular words do not take the form of a traditional narrative, when experienced collectively they do in fact tell a story – one with a beginning, a middle and an end.

Central to the development of this work is the singular and enduring term ‘lovED’. LovEd is the word that has given rise to so many others, each full with their own meaning. While each of these words tell their own story, none dominate the one word that endures above all others – lovED. This work offers an ode to love, loss and what remains – in the end it all ends with ED.

*All profits to go to Addiction Solutions Victoria

The Exhibition View