ABIGAIL WAMBOLDT

I create out of the memory of a sensation or from visual material that manifests itself in my imagination. When there is a need for more heightened realism I work from photographs and live models. I gravitate towards tactile materials that allow my body to become physically immersed in the experience of producing an artwork.

My work considers the orientation and development of self in relationship to the contemporary climate of our culture, as well as our cultural history. The paintings shown in Inner Pictures are repetitions of nipples. These nipples are of people from all, classes, ages, colors and genders. Some of these nipples are painted from imagination and some from photographs, both found and personal.

Nipples are publicly accepted on men and children. When a girl child reaches a certain age her nipples become pornographic. Women of every age may not show their nipples in public. With this work I want to question why women's nipples are censored. What does this censoring communicate about the cultural feeling towards female bodies, and how has this become, and continues to be, accepted public practice.

Abigail Wamboldt was born in Massachusetts and raised in Massachusetts and California. She received a BFA from Montserrat College of Art, an MFA from the University of New Hampshire, and was a recipient of the Edwin & Mary Schafer Award, which allowed her to study in Italy. She currently lives in Rhode Island, and teaches studio art at several universities and colleges in New England. She endeavors to exhibit with organizations that inspire dialogue and innovation.