Lauren Kennedy: Consequences of Our Actions: Fragility of the Body

An MFA Thesis Exhibition

April 11 - 15, 2022

Artist Statement

I have loved and been fascinated by the human body my entire life. In the end, however, it has betrayed me time and time again. I watched my mother go through cancer and her body fail her. I feel my own body fail because of previous injuries or conditions that I have. I struggle with the idea of the fact that our bodies that are meant to sustain and protect us inevitably fail us, and that failure is painful. Pain and entropy are part of the human experience, but why? That is what I explore using plaster, once used to heal bones, and making books. I demonstrate my frustration and questioning of the human experience through performance and tearing these books apart, hoping that I will come to terms with the ideas of pain and entropy.

About Lauren Kennedy

Lauren Kennedy works and resides in Columbia, South Carolina. She creates sculptural work using folded paper books and coats them in plaster before utilizing performance art to crush them and tear them apart, unveiling words underneath that are her own personal ramblings about the struggles of pain and entropy.