Deborah Eddy Artist Statement

Deborah Eddy is an emerging feminist activist artist. Her Doctoral work researched feminist activism, ageism, the invisibility of older women and gerontological feminist theory. Her works comment on her experience and perspective of ageing women and society, domestic inequality, domestic violence, and the environment. Her methodology is sculpture, performance and craftivism which is craft plus activism. She uses sewing, weaving, knitting and embroidery to make kitchenalia, quilts, samplers, and the costumes in which she performs. By using this methodology, she is joining materials and concepts to highlight the societal issues she is interested in. Eddy employs building supplies and safety equipment to make her work. These materials are a deliberate feminising of items more commonly associated in male orientated occupations. Often, she will also add cleaning materials. Metaphorically she is addressing issues which are either largely invisible or are politically pushed aside, for example climate change. Additionally, the high vis palette of her materials gives a hypervisibility to the issues she is commenting on.

Eddy’s highlights have been completing a Bachelor of Visual Arts followed by Honours and culminating in achieving a Doctor of Visual Arts in 2022 as an older woman. Additionally, she completed a residency with the Feminist Art Collective (FAC) in Toronto Canada in 2018. Her work No Comfort was acquired by Moreton Bay Regional Council in 2018 and has been included in two collection survey exhibitions since. In 2022 she was commissioned by Outer Space to make work for the Judith Wright Arts Centre window installation.