Ilene Bothma

In my work I attempt to both unravel and knit together my experience of the domestic space and in more recent years my experience of motherhood.

My work is situated in a space between multiple binaries: the comfortable and the awkward; the controlled and uncontrolled; the familiar and the strange; exteriority and interiority. It is in this strange space that I find myself exploring ideas around bodily autonomy, subjectivity, work, worth and taboo.

My materials are noticeably varied and reflect my interest in oppositions. Repetitive, laborious acts which mimic the tedium of domestic chores, accidents, destruction and re-assembling all play an important role in how I explore my relationships within the domestic sphere and my role as a mother, a wife, a human being. The performative nature of my art making process often reflects the busyness of women’s-work to expose the constant labour of parenting, the time-consuming, seemingly endless repetition of trifling tasks that is required within a domestic setting.

Through the use of oil painting, sculpture, watercolour, ceramics, photography and embroidery I try to lead the viewer towards an experience of my uncanny.

The image provided for submission titled Shade is part of a triptych of paintings reflecting on identity politics, specifically looking at my own sense of identity as a mother. This image is a self-portrait with a white crocheted veil over my face and shoulders. The sense of entrapment and enclosure created by the knotted veil reflects the ambivalence I experience as a mother. However, within the recent context of uncertainty during a global pandemic, this portrait has taken on new significance. The vulnerability of the figure, together with the confined nature of the roped veil speaks about a universal experience of a global pandemic. It becomes more about mental health during what can only be described as a very challenging time for most people. This self-portrait speaks about the ambiguity and uncertainty most humans are currently experiencing.

Image details:
Ilené Bothma, Shade (2020), oil on canvas, 904 x 845mm framed