PinchukArtCentre

Lindsey Mendick

Lindsey Mendick is a London based artist who works with clay, a medium that is often associated with decoration and the domestic, subverting these historic connotations to create skilled monuments to ‘low culture’ and the contemporary female experience. Often culminating in elaborate installations, Mendick’s autobiographical work offers a form of catharsis, encouraging the viewer to explore their own personal history through the revisionist lens of the artist. Her work challenges the male gaze, promoting instead an unapologetic, humorous and, at times, grotesque femininity. Lindsey Mendick received an MA in Sculpture from the Royal College of Art, London in 2017. She was the recipient of the Alexandra Reinhardt memorial award in 2018 and was also selected for Jerwood Survey 2019. Recent solo and two-person exhibitions include: Eastside Projects, Birmingham; Castor Projects, London; Hannah Barry Gallery, London; The Turnpike, Leigh; Zabludowicz Collection, London; and Vitrine, Basel.
Lindsey Mendick is a London based artist who works with clay, a medium that is often associated with decoration and the domestic, subverting these historic connotations to create skilled monuments to ‘low culture’ and the contemporary female experience. Often culminating in elaborate installations, Mendick’s autobiographical work offers a form of catharsis, encouraging the viewer to explore their own personal history through the revisionist lens of the artist. Her work challenges the male gaze, promoting instead an unapologetic, humorous and, at times, grotesque femininity. Lindsey Mendick received an MA in Sculpture from the Royal College of Art, London in 2017. She was the recipient of the Alexandra Reinhardt memorial award in 2018 and was also selected for Jerwood Survey 2019. Recent solo and two-person exhibitions include: Eastside Projects, Birmingham; Castor Projects, London; Hannah Barry Gallery, London; The Turnpike, Leigh; Zabludowicz Collection, London; and Vitrine, Basel.

The spatial installation Can’t take my eyes off you discovers the prospect of having children as well as the choice of not giving birth. It is inspired by the David Cronenberg horror movie The Brood. A grotesque picture of motherhood narrates the story of a woman who, as a result of a psychoplasmic therapy, brings to life a number of mutant children, who then roam the town killing everyone who has ever hurt their “mother”.

Mental health is among the essential issues raised by the work. Constantly feeling pressured in conversations about motherhood, the artist critiques society’s treatment of those who decide to remain childfree. Mendick uses her personal story to open up a wider dialogue. In this case, conversation about the psychological impact of reproductive pressures engages both her own obsessive thoughts and the belief that an individual voice can bring change to the customary treatment of women.

Lindsey Mendick’s installation utilizes cinematic techniques drawn from the horror genre. She creates an installation divided into two settings; the first one represents an outdoor space with a playground, idyllic blue skies, and fake-grass underfoot. The second room reproduces a perfectly typical interior of a1970s house. Both spaces are inhabited by bizarre celeriac-headed infants who evoke a pervasive feeling of anxiety. These ceramic children are frozen in all manner of dangerous and terrified moments, showing the hostility of the environment and the impossibility of constantly monitoring their actions.

In the final space, there is a TV playing a video which combines cartoon footage with Mendick’s voice singing a lullaby-like interpretation of the song Can’t take my eyes off you.