Alexandra Carter
Hexentanz
Ink, oil and gold leaf on drafting film, 114 x 104 cm,
£2600
Mother-and-child imagery takes a grotesque twist, melding with abstract forms based on geological formations, and rained down upon with a gold-leafed pattern that connotes blood, milk, sweat, or other bodily fluids. I specifically referenced the hands of German expressionist dancer Mary Wigman for the witchy, conjuring limbs that frame the bodies. She is known for a dance titled “Hexentanz” (“witch dance”), to which I pay homage in the painting’s title. The body language here suggests a vampiric relationship between mother and child, tapping into both maternal ambivalence and utter devotion, while navigating my experience with infertility treatment and postpartum healing.
Family Dinner
Ink on drafting film, 140 x 91 cm,
£3700
There’s a chaos of visual references here, including art historical images of parents in mythology (Medea as well as Cronus, father of Zeus) and burlesque poster iconography. Mixed with abstract elements, and a rendering of my own child’s face, the idea of family consumption and gathering came to mind, hence the loaded title “Family Dinner.” In forming this imagery I wanted to play with revealing vs. obscuring, questioning what we choose to hide vs. display, alluding to family secrets.