Magdalena Dukiewicz investigates how the body, particularly the objectified femme body, is obsessively controlled by society, and then subverts this control, reclaiming bodily autonomy while emphasizing endurance and resilience. In Object #15 and Object #11, Dukiewicz sculpts with repurposed kitchen knives and her own hair to reference the pervasive nature of domestic violence. In Object #11, a flaccid blond braid hangs from a knife handle, references tropes about virility and shapes associated with fetish and sexual pleasure. Object #4 is made of found metal and bundles of the artist’s hair that she began collecting at the age of twelve, when she first began making informed decisions about the representation of her body. Viewing femininity as a threat and the source of unwanted attention, the artist decided to cut off the very long hair that until then had been her distinguishing feature. Dukiewicz continued wearing her hair very short throughout her twenties, only recently embracing her feminine attributes.

- Excerpt from the Care/Condition/Contro press release by A.E. Chapman

Objects ( 2022)

MAGDALENA  DUKIEWICZ