Fix and Fill series

 

"Oh! that's your work, they make you feel strange on the inside, all funny and disgusting, there is just something about them that's horribly fascinating." (Anonymous 2023) 

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Exploration of ways to bring to the surface both conscious and subconscious thoughts regarding the fragility of the mind and body itself relating to body image. Primarily focusing on the pressures of a society obsessed with modern beauty standards, highlighting the damage and documentation of risks posed through literal and non-literal representation. 

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Her works include physical casts of bodies, including her own using materials wire,  expanding foam and latex as MacHirst displays the gruesome and exaggerated reality of thought patterns and obsessive alterations made to the body. They are formed by a structure, that is deliberately manipulated to portray pain, obsession and internal emotions. Material choice is to confront the viewer with the notion of what goes on behind the scenes, the disgust, the fear, the lack of understanding. 

It is generally what people clam up and avoid conversations about, brought to the surface, existing on real body casts, suspended by meat hooks. 

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"I want the viewer to feel uncomfortable amongst these life sized sculptures, although they are mainly body casts, I believe the representation is what makes them disturbing, some are very obvious, meanwhile others exist ambiguously, giving them an ominous feel. Besides that, the creation of these sculptures were uncomfortable for me, subject matter hitting home and having to confront and work, bringing internal fears to the surface through exploration of restricted and open space for visual effect. It is challenging, latex and paint become pus, expanding foam becomes body fat oozing out. The creation was definitely important in documenting the uncomfortableness and the realness of the subject matter, my body and my fears became the main focus, now on display for the world to see."

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