Carol Sommer
I'm Every Woman (it's all in me)
Exhibiting from Wednesday August 17th 2011
For Nana
This body of work can be framed as a collection within a house full of collections.
A lady’s hand mirror can be seen as old fashioned and charming; an outdated relic from the dressing table; a quaint signifier of vanity, of introspection, of the search for identity, of self-doubt, or perhaps even self-loathing. Each mirror is dedicated to a particular literary heroine, and the statements etched upon them serve to forefront the fluidity of meaning over time and contrasting frames of reference.
On a recent visit to Wallington the gentleman on duty in the library told me that the Trevelyan family were great ’writers in the margins’. For me, the etched quotes are also ‘writings in the margins’, and these altered hand mirrors are arguably objects which both frame and provoke feminine reflections on several, potentially fragmented, levels.
For Tess
Tuesday 16th August 2011
With the assistance of Kath and Steve from the house and John Lavell (another of the participating artists) 28 mirrors were installed in various rooms including the library, the bedrooms, the nursery, the dining room and the kitchen.
With the assistance of Kath and Steve from the house and John Lavell (another of the participating artists) 28 mirrors were installed in various rooms including the library, the bedrooms, the nursery, the dining room and the kitchen.