Rural Shame was an exhibition that was recently shown in Custom House Gallery & Studios in Westport, Co. Mayo. It consisted of a 4 works that aimed to bring the subject of domestic abuse into discourse. At first glance the exhibition appealed aesthetically to the eye, it held a pleasant aura but on closer examination, the viewer realized that all was not right; something was off, that the work disguised an insidious undertone. Adapting to the gallery space, and viewing it in correlation with the space of the home by bringing the private out into the public in a move to open up a conversation around the hidden injustices of the female within the home. This work responds to the theme of seclusion, the emphasis on isolation for its inhabitant as a result of living within a coercive environment. Room 10 x 8; circa 1990 is constructed to the dimensions of a small room from salvaged domestic objects, refashioned to tell a story. Its title refers to an era prior to social media, which only serves to enhance its solitude. Constructed from salvaged domestic objects, refashioned to tell a story. Its entrance is unconnected; light seeps out from beneath its threshold signifying the boundary between that room and the rest of the house. The lit Plexiglas tubing runs the perimeter of the work; the red light is symbolic of the Sacred Heart bulb that was a familiar feature through many Irish homes during that era and of Catholicism’s saturating influence. Mother stood with her back to me is also a piece on loneliness and isolation. In this work there is a doubling, the two mothers, both with their backs to us. The statue is a representation of the suffocating power of Catholicism. The work also includes stripped telephones, disconnected devices to the outer world that emphasize the isolation. You Have Been Given a Second Chance is composed of 7 mops. Each mop is accompanied by a hand-stitched piece of text that spells out the title of the work. The number 3 is symbolic of the Trinity; three mop handles are replaced by fluorescent tubing that diffuses red light. Stones piled on top of each other form the mops bases and suggest a marker. 


 






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Rural Shame