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Molly Nash

Molly Nash explores histories of patriarchal structures intertwining female nudity and sex. Her work aims to reappropriate women as subjects of the male gaze, reframing them in a context where they are in control of their bodies and sexual experiences. She utilises a variety of materials including domestic items, tights, wood, plaster, and wax to create the figures onto which videos are projected, creating hybrid sculptures on the cusp of the animate and inanimate, the seer and the seen.



The large-scale sculptures are bold, confrontational representations of women that demand to be looked at instead of tacitly being depicted and idealised by the male artist. Despite the female nude featuring heavily throughout art history, misogynistic attitudes towards female sexuality remain unchanged and the female nude retains the power to scandalise, with sexual women being cast into the role of monster. The female nude has been inextricably bound up with male desire, thus, by projecting herself onto the work, Molly challenges perpetuated power structures by displaying the body from a female perspective, addressing issues of consent for the gaze of an audience, and importantly allowing the work to meet and return the gaze of her viewers.



The intention of the work is to express women’s right to their bodies and how they choose to portray it, not merely being fetishized and objectified for the pleasure of the male spectator. By reclaiming elements of male fantasy that have been projected onto the female body, Molly explores the contradiction between desire for the female body but simultaneous disgust when presented with the raw, unglamourised version of it. She also questions the double standards of sexual morality that women suffer when openly expressing their sexuality, challenging the merging of a liberal expression of sex and nudity with understandings of consent.

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An important aspect of Molly’s work is the gaze of the sculptures meeting and returning those of her viewers. Rather than complicitly existing as a desirable reclining nude for the gratification of her audience, Molly’s sculptures are confrontational and shocking, actively inviting the audience to look. Furthermore, the sculptures are significantly positioned on ‘beds’ that hold them on an equal level to the spectator, thus the gaze of both audience and work meet without the audience looking down on them.

 Unfortunately, to adapt the work to an online platform, the sensation of walking around the work and experiencing the sculptures’ gaze is lost. However, to continue to bring a sense of life to the work, the videos which would have once been projected have been overlaid onto a digital collage. Now, instead of the sculptures themselves watching the audience, the virtual images of the sculptures continue to gaze out at the viewer, and become the spectator watching the viewer exploring the webpage.

 Furthermore, the current social climate has altered the significance of the bedroom setting in the work. Originally, the bedroom was representative of privacy and intimacy, creating a juxtaposition between the domestic and the promiscuous. However, now that communication via online platforms is commonplace, the bedroom setting has become more visible and considerably less intimate when those on the call have the ability to see into the room.

 

ABOUT

Molly Nash explores histories of patriarchal structures intertwining female nudity and sex. Her work aims to reappropriate women as subjects of the male gaze, reframing them in a context where they are in control of their bodies and sexual experiences. She utilises a variety of materials including domestic items, tights, wood, plaster, and wax to create the figures onto which videos are projected, creating hybrid sculptures on the cusp of the animate and inanimate, the seer and the seen. The large-scale sculptures are bold, confrontational representations of women that demand to be looked at instead of tacitly being depicted and idealised by the male artist. Despite the female nude featuring heavily throughout art history, misogynistic attitudes towards female sexuality remain unchanged and the female nude retains the power to scandalise, with sexual women being cast into the role of monster. The female nude has been inextricably bound up with male desire, thus, by projecting herself onto the work, Molly challenges perpetuated power structures by displaying the body from a female perspective, addressing issues of consent for the gaze of an audience, and importantly allowing the work to meet and return the gaze of her viewers.

The intention of the work is to express women’s right to their bodies and how they choose to portray it, not merely being fetishized and objectified for the pleasure of the male spectator. By reclaiming elements of male fantasy that have been projected onto the female body, Molly explores the contradiction between desire for the female body but simultaneous disgust when presented with the raw, unglamorised version of it. She also questions the double standards of sexual morality that women suffer when openly expressing their sexuality, challenging the merging of a liberal expression of sex and nudity with understandings of consent.

 

How has Molly's work changed for an online platform?

The  
   
Sculpture

The female body is very much policed and censored. Ironically, this work was removed from YouTube for voilating their sex and nudity policy, and a warning was issued for uploading 'sexually gratifying' content. 

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