Theatres of the mind

Theatres of the Mind brings together a collection of psychologically ambiguous objects and spaces. Empty yet charged with history and meaning, they carry the presence of those who once inhabited them. A confessional, a theatre box, a timber-framed hospital bed, appear as stages where layered human experiences once unfolded: guilt and absolution, intimacy and spectacle, hope and healing, birth and death.

The work asks not only what behaviours and rituals have taken place within these chambers, but whether the spaces themselves take part, shaping behaviour and evoking emotion. Are these spaces merely backdrops to human activity, or do they themselves perform, shaping the moments and gestures enacted within them?

What remains when only the stage is left and the actors are gone?

Alongside these spaces appear the empty cases of a crucifix, duelling pistols, rifles and medals. Symbols of violence and power, faith and devotion. Objects once handled and inhabited now lie dormant yet remain potent. What do these forms of authority trigger in you, the viewer?

The presence of absence runs through the series, leaving gaps for the audience to complete, each image becoming a theatre of the mind.