Helen Chadwick Analysis

Helen Chadwick was an English sculptor, photographer and installation artist. Chadwick was born in May 1953, she lived in Hackney and studied at Croydon college or Art, The faculty of Arts and Architecture Brighton Polytechnic and then went on to study at Chelsea School of Art. Chadwick's work often featured a rich variety of materials such as flesh, flowers, chocolate and fur. Her contribution to contemporary art was original and intensely personal characterised by the use of her own body as both subject and object.Few artists of the time embraced modern technology such as the photocopier, light projection, computer and microscope. After leaving art school she began tp make soft, organic objects based on parts of her body. Later more complex installations comprised of photocopied images of her body suspended in a sea of organic forms, emphasising  the sensuality and physical pleasure. 

 This project is called 'Meat Abstracts'. The work has been structured by using raw meat and fabrics which have been overlapped with each other and adorned with features such as gold leaf. The folding of the fabric hides the edges of the meat/organs to give it a more softer feel. Meat and fabric are not usually combined so to have these two elements together it could give a nerving perspective on the work. The meat is seem to be a gruesome object and fabric is seem as a feminine element but combined together it softens the meat and makes the fabric to be seem as the gruesome object. The heightened colour makes the detail on the organs and meat stand out such as the texture and lines.

The photograph has been planned and has a thought out composition to make it look complete but at the same time look like the objects have fallen into place. The materials, tools, techniques and process that the artist has used in terms of the composition is the incorporation of including fabrics with the organs to make the gory organs look appealing, using a photocopier to capture the nature of the raw meat/ organs by using ambient lighting and a sharp contrast.