Skewed body parts; allusions to genitalia, sex and violence; tinges of the fleshiest pink; a girl with a lightbulb for a head. Since the 1980s Pat Brassington’s images have entranced the psyche of contemporary Australian art. The photo-media artist’s staged, crafted scenes evoke something complicated, quietened, even repressed, in human nature, with her works often linked to psychoanalysis, feminism and surrealism.
Pat Brassington talks with Art Guide editor-in-chief Tiarney Miekus about first studying art in her thirties, and her early encounters with feminist texts through a wives’ book club. She also talks about her feelings on living and working in Hobart, the role of psychoanalysis in explaining her work, and what it means to mine the unconscious.
You can read the full interview with Tiarney Miekus here.
IMAGE: Pat Brassington, 'Pearl' (detail), 2016, pigment print, 80 x 68cm, Edition of 8 plus 2 artist's proofs.