Initial research and sketches

Photograph of artistic references in a book. There are two images on the page, one is of the artist Louise Bourgeois from a performance as Artemis, 1980. The other image is of Betsy Damon in a street performance as 'The 7,000-year-old-woman, 1977. — photograph from a page in ‘Women contested territory and art’ by Judy Chicago and Edward Lucie-Smith.

The Garden of Dreams-

Gardens have always played an important role in British culture, offering fertile imagery for the arts across the centuries. I will reflect upon the symbolism of the garden, and the various incarnations in paintings, tapestries, and literature across the world. Situating this project in my local park, as a contemporary Garden of Eden. I will depict contemporary issues and themes to explore desire, nature and current affairs. Researching themes relating to the divine feminine, fertility, and forbidden fruit.

Latifah Stranack

Born to parents from the East and the West, Latifah has always been fascinated by cultural hybridity and how this has shaped her senses, and the lens through which she experiences the world. In pursuit of a fleeting moment, she contextualises and reframes the presence and absence of family members and belongings. Partially revealed, Latifah attempts to collapse her present reality and bring the past to life, forever layered in washes of paint, helping her work through subconscious emotions and fears. The work she is compelled to create, enables and empowers her to make sense of who she is.