Holly Holder’s work embodies an abstract and conceptual visual language that is centred around the human psyche, gender and the self. Her current project lady is a body of work focused on the woman as an archetype, placing the female gaze at the forefront of the photographic effort to reclaim female representation. The imagery explores the frustration and challenges in which gendered power dynamics have shaped women in a patriarchal society, governed by the male gaze. The project serves as a passage for delving into the artist’s personal encounters and the intricacies of feminine identity, including the journey from childhood to adulthood, encompassing a range of nuanced experiences. Engaging with the female body and its form, using the artist’s own body in specific images, the work utilises transgressive iconography to explode the tired tropes of received ideas of femininity and domesticity, and the role of the woman in the photographic landscape.
