Self-Made Relics uses the human figure to ground the exhibition’s environmental themes in lived, bodily experience.
The figures are rendered in a restrained, transparent style that avoids idealisation or spectacle. Their nudity is functional rather than provocative, allowing the body to read as a neutral human form rather than a social or cultural type. Transparency exposes construction and fragility, reinforcing the work’s focus on consequence rather than beauty.
The uncanny quality of the figures—their stillness, fixed gaze, and containment—serves to hold the viewer’s attention rather than shock. This discomfort is intentional and controlled, reflecting the psychological tension many people experience when confronting environmental responsibility.
By situating each figure within the waste generated through its own making, the work shifts the narrative away from blame and toward accountability. The figures are not harmed by an external force; they inhabit the outcomes of everyday consumption.
