Phantasmal Gallery
Phantasmal Gallery
Taryn O'Reilly
Whipped Cream And Other Delights
A Little Bit About The Artist
A Statement From The Artist
Taryn O’Reilly is a multidisciplinary sculpture and installation artist whose practice takes form through textiles, ceramics and traditional mould-making techniques. Her research predominantly centres around the monstrous feminine and the structured tropes of women & queerness in modern day media. Taking cues from the horror genre, Dutch still-life paintings, and vintage advertisements Taryn creates cutesy, nightmarish worlds that explore conceptions of queerness, femininity, and desire.
"At the core of Taryn’s artistic practice lies a profound fascination with the interplay between the macabre and the theatricality of camp. Through experimental manipulations of form and traditional craftsmanship, She has cultivated a diverse body of work that showcases these blurred boundaries between attraction and repulsion. Tables filled with extravagant ceramic cakes and slick wet oysters crawling with monstrous creatures and maggots. Glistening stuffed red lips and inflatable pierced tongues slip against each other, while glossy PVC hands with claw-like talons grip weapons. All of which sits amongst a nostalgic backdrop that carries a legacy of idealised femininity and desire. Taryn has begun to introduce a kinetic element to her practice by having her sculptures illuminate, ooze, and writhe. By dissecting and subverting these traditional narratives Taryn invites viewers to engage with the delicate and the grotesque in equal measure."
Do you like scary movies? And if so which ones?
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I love scary movies! Some of my favourites are the old black and white films like Bride of Frankenstein and Dracula. Some of the more modern ones I love are the original Carrie and Suspiria and Scream.
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Who's your fave Final Girl and why?
I have a few favourite Final Girls actually! I love Dani Ardor from Midsommar is such a dynamic character. She’s not a typical final girl in the sense that she’s androgynous and tough/masculine from the start. She actually becomes more feminine and vulnerable as the film goes on and that becomes her strength and it is ultimately what keeps her alive, unlike the classic slasher Final Girls. Sydney Prescott from Scream and Laurie Strode from Halloween are great characters too.
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What is the biggest influence in your practice?
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I think the biggest influence in my practice is the monstrous feminine. I really love the duality of femininity and monstrosity and how that manifests in my work. I have been using monstrosity to represent myself or look at emotions that tend to get buried because they’re viewed as ugly or unfeminine. Sometimes I am the monster and sometimes the monster is coming for me. I like to build uncanny alternate worlds for my female monster to exist in as well. In these universes she can grieve, she can feed, she can be vulnerable, she can feel rage, she can rot, and she can laugh without judgement or pretense.
