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Unearthly Girlhood

Josephine Olutayo

Profile picture of Josephine Olutayo

I find inspiration through introspection. By exploring my mixed heritage and the cultural history of Nigeria and England, my creative practice allows me to further discover my own identity. Additionally, thematic examination into my deepest fears and fascinations, and the nature of the neurodivergent mind, allows me to use the body as a canvas for storytelling, through textural investigation and sculptural elements.

I find inspiration through introspection. By exploring my mixed heritage and the cultural history...

Within my project, Unearthly Girlhood, I explore the intersection of neurodivergence and femininity, capturing the uncertainty of personhood- the feeling that something is not quite right, the experience of those to whom being a person does not always come naturally. Through fashion and textile design, I aim to translate the hidden experiences of the mind into tangible, wearable forms, reflecting themes of misunderstanding, alienation, pretence, and control.

I investigate the parallels between portrayals of paranoia, timelessness, and altered states of consciousness found in surrealist art, and the rituals, obsessions and cognitive dissonance often felt by neurodivergent individuals.

Fashion has long been a tool for both suppression and empowerment, particularly for marginalised communities. This project examines how garments, through material manipulation and experimental construction techniques, can embody these tensions: obsession vs. detachment, control vs. disorder, purity vs. infestation. By incorporating textiles, sculptural and tactile elements, I explore how costume and knitwear can express the uncanny, the surreal, and the deeply personal.

Final work

Front facing girl wearing a crumbling textured white corset and tightly knitted cream top, draped in pink knit and ribbon-like silver fabric.
Girl in neutral pose standing in front of the monumental pillar of a flyover.
Girl balanced on one leg on a rock in a lea with arms outstretched.

Research and process

  • collage of a woman with a razor held up to her right eye surrounded by 3 anatomical sketches of eyes.
  • collage of a hunched woman stood by a termite hill, surrounded by a beetle, an ant head, and an open mouthed leech.
  • Image grid of 25 close up photographed textures both natural and industrial.
  • a collection of 6 textile samples inspired by industrial decay.
  • Mannequin bodice dressed in a plaster textured corset, with pink knit piece draped over the shoulders.

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Unearthly Girlhood

Within my project, Unearthly Girlhood, I explore the intersection of neurodivergence and femininity, capturing the uncertainty of personhood- the feeling that something is not quite right, the experience of those to whom being a person does not always come natura...

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