‘Decade’ is an exploration of ten years spent not making art.

It reflects on how emotional expression is shaped by both internal and external forces. Under the right conditions, connection can transform shame, disconnection, loss, and fear. But without safe and supportive systems that meet our emotional needs, expression can be obstructed.

We are frequently taught, through cultural narratives and systemic structures, that personal wellbeing and success are solely the result of individual effort, grit and determination. When we struggle, this framing casts our distress as personal failure, stripping away context and reinforcing systems of power.

‘Decade’ examines both the internal and systemic factors that foster or inhibit expression. Themes of expression and repression are explored through a series of objects whose analogous colours and repetitious construction create a sense of immersion.

The materials used include fabric, rubber, cellophane and polyurethane, metal, wood and synthetic twine. These materials are representative of waste, domesticity, outpouring, comfort, safety and unease.

Decade was exhibited in Platform Arts, Belfast in August 2023.