Andromeda Unbinding is the first work in the sculptural triptych The Art of Unbinding — a reimagining of the myth of Andromeda in which she finds her own tools of liberation rather than waiting to be rescued.

 

The sculpture is made from a deconstructed wedding dress — organza silk stripped back, cut and transformed. The upper half is waxed rigid, hanging from a rusty iron mooring ring fixed to a block of driftwood, inspired by the harbour walls at Lyme Regis when the tide is out. Woven into the silk chain are private thoughts and bad memories written on individual strands; visible but illegible, present but sealed.

 

Interwoven throughout are hand-forged copper ivy leaves, crystals representing fresh tears, and turquoise stones echoing sea glass. A thread of dark red cotton, dyed using a pigment made from crushed rust and ash, runs through the entire piece — and through all three works in the trilogy.

 

As the sculpture descends toward the floor it softens, wax lessens and freedom is found. Glass and metal blades appear, then feathers: the tools Andromeda finds to free herself. The crystals give way to pearls; tears dried. The red thread fades. And at the floor, the silk spreads wide and free, stepping away from the wall.

 

She freed herself