Rosie Cahill's practice reflects on her experience and connection with both her mother and grandmother, generational trauma and the effects of a past oppressive Ireland on the women in her family line.
This work combines found objects with a self composed piano piece of the same title. The piano instrument becomes symbolic of this grandmother-mother-daughter bond and the complexities within.
The use of the piano chair carried through generations within the installation is a key element in this reflection. The fragility of memory is echoed in the use of found memorabilia such as some of Cahill’s grandmother's old possessions and some sculptural photography explorations of her mother’s childhood.
The artist associates the piano with her grandmother's progression with dementia; playing the piano was one of her last remaining capabilities. This work also contemplates the power of music and how it transcends the deterioration of memory.
Motherline, installation view
Plaster piece (detail)
Installation view
Exploring generations
A key memory
Motherline, poem (detail)
Mother Daughter