bex massey - my deuce,
my double
Massey presents the viewer with isolated objects depicted in a soft realism, rendered in oil under an even light. Images are presented in relation to each other, two per work, a painted object depicted beside its partner to form a visual echo.
Her previous works and exhibitions have engaged the codes and history of queer culture, along with markers of selfhood and Northern identity. As suggested by the show title, borrowed from Auden’s poem ‘The Age of Anxiety’, these new works derive from feelings of tension and stress felt by the artist in recent months. Massey cites society’s persistent, habitual reminder that female + female = incorrect, that existence outside of the approval and verification of the male gaze is inappropriate. Her recent fertility journey with her partner has brought this into sharp focus, and this process is alluded to in the title of each piece, named as they are after the potential sperm donors they have considered. This additional layer encourages the viewer to see the sexual imagery through a reproductive lens.