Paula Meir Art
I am a conceptual and installation artist whose work interrogates the cultural constructions of power, sexuality, and discrimination, with a sharp focus on sexism and misogyny. Through painting, ceramics, print, photography, and film, I explore how language seeds behaviors across generations, shaping societal norms and reinforcing structures of dominance and control.
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After stepping out of a long career in the corporate world I have first-hand experience of my own and other women’s stories in relation to how they have been spoken to and the impact that has had on them long after the words are delivered. After seeing an Ed Rusche exhibition at MOMA I realised that I could use text and language in a way that would allow curiousity and a lengthened attention to words that are often easily dismissed and forgotten in this overcrowded world of information.
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At the very heart of my practice is the tension between uncomfortable and truthful dialogue. Words often dismissed as jokes or ‘banter’ and the profound physical and psychological impact these words have on women. By researching past and observing present language, particularly from institutions such as the police, media, and everyday discourse, I expose how linguistic, cultural traditions continue to shape our beliefs, values and behaviours within society
Words are collected, recontextualized, and replayed, carried by carefully chosen materials that reinforce their meaning and weight. Materiality is integral, serving as both a vessel for language and a record of my own touch and imprint. The audience is invited to confront, question, and reconsider their own vocabulary, their role in perpetuating or dismantling linguistic power structures, and the ego systems that sustain them.
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Through my work, I hope to provoke a public debate and illuminate social justice, urging a shift in language that fosters greater equality which leads to different behaviours in life experiences and opportunities. By holding up a mirror to society, I want to challenge viewers not just to see and hear differently, but to speak differently.

