Dottie-may Aston

Musing upon the organic formations of a mollusc and the soft silhouettes of the female figure guided the creation of the series titled Golden Objectification. Gradual layers of clay accrued then carved into fine details, an instinctive process powered by imagination.

Two expressive figures stand adjacent to the other as they each amalgamate into molluscs. The humanoid features are obscured as the figures’ necks spiral off into an object. Removing their facial identity and substituting it with a shell has cast a detachment from the vulnerability of the nude. Working from a damaged shell, no larger than a fingernail, I have exalted the tiny subject into a more tactile article. The use of gold in my work is to symbolise greed and the human want for perfection. In the same way shells are plucked from the coast and soon forgotten about, beauty can be a novel fantasy. With cynical humour I have depicted the female form as a trophy, to be admired for their appealing aesthetic, yet it serves as a commentary on beauty standards and ideals.