PKD Studies
Exhibition Dates
July 19th 2017— August 11th 2017
Paloma Tendero‘s work is based on the influence of genetic inheritance. This exhibition is the result of a two-month artist in residence project at Kentish Town Health Centre, where Tendero looks for an interpretation of the beauty behind illness. Through photography and embroidery she explores the beauty of PKD cells.
Tendero was born with Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD), a genetic disorder passed down through generations. The disease renders the body vulnerable to an unrequested destiny. This genetic flaw has led her to explore the physical and psychological relationships that spring from inherited DNA.
Our bodies are containers which house our anatomy, alongside the stored memories of who we are and where we came from. Their forms betray a sculptural expression of each individual’s inheritance. While we attempt to craft ourselves into unique beings, separated from familial features and traits, our genetic and biological characteristics remain outside of our control, sewn inside us at the very moment of conception.
It seems that our body is a friend when it is healthy and an adversary when it is sick. We can either give in to our illness and become defined by it or we refuse to coexist with the illness. This causes the further question: If we are our body, does that mean we are the disease?
