April 10 - May 15, 2021
From the gallery:
“Ivester Contemporary is pleased to present, A Body is a Cellular Network, a Cellular Network is a Body, featuring new work completed this spring by Katy McCarthy. In preparation for this exhibition, McCarthy handcrafted soft wax casts which depict parts of her own body that have been injured or experience chronic pain. She then shipped the casts to her mother, Robin, a chiropractor in California. Over Facetime, Robin conducted a remote bodywork session, during which she manipulated, massaged, held, and adjusted McCarthy’s waxen body parts. The process functioned as both placebo and performance. The session is presented as an installation featuring the soft wax casts and a two-channel video in the gallery.
“In the lead up to making this work I was thinking about what it means to be in a long distance relationship with my mother. I also had a ceaseless two-week headache and yearned for her touch. The work came out of a place of need. I wanted to cultivate ways of being physically present while we are apart. Sending surrogate body parts to my mom was an attempt to satisfy this need.
I’m interested in the importance of intention in healing. Different people call this different things: the placebo effect, energy work, etc. I’ve started to think about how you don’t need to understand a healing modality for it to work on your body. ” –Katy McCarthy”
On View: April 10, 2021 | 1–5 pm
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Reception: May 1, 2021 | 7–9 pm
916 Springdale Rd Bldg 2, Suite 107 Austin, TX 78702
Austin, 78702 Texas
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