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about abigail ruth

Abigail McAlister (b. 1997) is an artist born and raised in Durham, NC. She was transformed by her experiences as a birthing person and caregiver, which motivated the genesis of her shared art practice. Through deconstructing and reimagining ephemera, textiles, found objects, and combining them with fly-posting tools, such as wheatpaste, nails, and staples, she investigates matrescence, the pyschological process of becoming a mother, in order to establish new narratives and associations for mother identity, the need for responsibility, and the desire for rebellion. Her works serve as externalizations of the internal processes that are integral in generating new representational space and modes of understanding.



ARTIST STATEMENT
Essential to understanding the psychology of maternity are the concepts of totality and dedication. Through my work, I investigate the cycles of a woman’s life, with a focus on caregiving resulting in visceral work that explores the dichotomy of motherhood and individuality. I connect wasteful consumer culture with caretaking as a stride toward more awareness of impermanence and sacrifice to coming generations from past and present ones.