Art in Theory. In the sculptural work, Grace the Teapot, I have sought through allegorical narrative to trigger associations of enchantment in the viewer. The work is allegorical because it is an interpretation of the mythological. Allegory assumes, and imposes on us, the idea that there is something underneath. Under reification lies a literary trope, often personification.
Typological allegory points to a story.
Reification allegory points to a metaphore. Grace the Teapot is the outcome of a search for what I call a cultural identity in which I could take some pride. I wanted a symbol of nurture to associate with my white Australian heritage. This search came out of the shame I felt as a white Australian when our current Prime Minister, John Howard refused to apologise to the Indigenous peoples of Australia for the atrocities perpetrated against them by our white Australian forebears. Mythologically speaking, this search for cultural identity can be likened to the individual's struggle for identity.