Local artist Siobhan Lowth has reflected on the pressures of social media and public judgement in her exhibition Scrutiny, which is on display at Bundaberg Regional Art Gallery in The Vault.
As a 26-year-old woman whose autoimmune disease, ANCA vasculitis, has severely impacted her adult life, Siobhan has drawn on her experiences to create this powerful exhibition.
“As a young adult growing up and watching the world of social media continuously grow and impact everyday life, I am aware that we are left in a world of constant judgement and being watched,” she said.
“Whether this judgement is positive or negative, we now live in a society where others are always watching and critiquing every decision you make.”
Siobhan’s artwork features the eyes of individual people, asking her followers to submit a photo of their eye which she then painted.
“I wanted to represent the emotion of eyes, showing how you do not know what someone is feeling when they are looking at you, so it is always up to your own interpretation,” she said.
“I asked my followers to send through photos of their eyes and I just painted them, making it really unique and inclusive of everyone.
“It is incredible to have this on display, a dream I have always had.”
Siobhan said her passion for art had always been there, although she realised it more so after becoming unwell and moving back to the Bundaberg Region.
“I became too unwell to work at the age of 21, I was diagnosed with a rare auto immune disease and I had to move back to Bundaberg and be with my parents to work on getting myself better,” she said.
“During that time, I just painted and used it as a way to release my emotions and just for something to do with my time, and it ignited that fire in me to continue panting and I realised it had always been a lifelong passion.
“I have always loved art; my grandfather and aunty are both artists and my whole life I have always enjoyed painting or drawing or just being creative.”
The exhibition will be on display at Bundaberg Regional Art Gallery until Sunday 16 October.
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