Rowan Walker

Rowan Walker graduated from the MA Fine Art program at the Edinburgh College of Art in 2023.

She uses both physical and digital sculpture to explore the intersection of mind and matter, asking what it means to be a physical and transient being.

Emerging from the intersection of mind and matter, my digital and sculptural works grapple with the essence of physical existence – the question of what it means to be a tangible and transient being. The vulnerability of the human body sits at the core of my practice as I explore sources of power, both internal and external, that exert influence upon this living vessel.

Seeking to grapple with the paradoxical nature of how we relate to our own, simultaneously familiar and foreign, bodies, I am interested in the significance of disgust as a distinctively human feeling. Philosopher Colin McGinn posits that disgust arises when we are confronted by the reality of our mortality.

I have found that McGinn’s philosophical interpretation of this visceral reaction has become an important undercurrent to my approach on the body. In exploring the enigmatic interplay between attraction and repulsion, my work aims to elicit visceral responses. Through measured aesthetic decisions I prompt viewers to almost reach the edge of repulsion, before pulling them back from succumbing to complete disgust. Through this delicate balance I aspire to cultivate a connection between the audience and my works, stimulating their thoughts and physical feelings, igniting introspection regarding their own corporeal experiences.

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Ultimately, by traversing the delicate boundaries between the tangible and intangible, the familiar and foreign, I aim to evoke a sense of connection and contemplation, encouraging viewers to reflect upon the enigma and uncanniness of own physical existence.