AMY AYANDA LESTER

On exhibition from 1 December 2022 to 1 February 2023

Opening Event: 1 December, 18:00 - 20:30

ABOUT THE ART

This body of work is somewhat a retrospect; some pieces in oil which were created for a Gallery while I was pregnant as well as pieces which have come after up until now. Using Retarder, Acrylic Paint, Ink, Images of a fetus, a mother holding a baby, fluid, limbs take form. Using oils I play with the more decorative, attractive image of what mothering can look and feel like. Motherhood and babies has been something that has informed so much of my life, yet it has always been something I can’t quite place and having twins recently it pushed me ever further from what I thought I knew as a mother, or a parent.

“THUMBSUCK” plays with the notion of fumbling through the throws of mothering, of making it up as we go along, of simply learning as we live (and love) through the chaos of bringing life into this world. Through our mistakes. It is a nodd to parents as we all sort of make it up as we go along and it is also a play on words; it is one of the first things the doctor likes to tell you at the 20 week scan "Look, she's sucking her thumb”.

'I was excited for the studio visit, I really felt that the work that was coming out had a place. I had been creating it for a particular space in mind. This was it. He looked at the work; “Art about motherhood doesn’t sell” he said, he didn’t really look at the pieces more .I appreciated his honesty but was definitely taken aback by his candid approach as I was now sitting down with my feet up, 33 weeks pregnant with the twins at the time. It was so hot, I was wearing a mask and I couldn’t breathe. “Oh doesn’t it? That’s interesting” I replied. “It just doesn’t sell” he said again.I wondered why on earth he would say that to someone currently pregnant with twins. With cankles and a face so full of water retention not many recognised me. “I could create some other work?” I said to him, clearly out of breath. “That would be great, let me know when you have ten, we want to do small online shows during Lockdown”“Sounds amazing” I said. That night my waters broke.'