Abstract
This article explores Helen Chadwick's early sculptural practice through an examination of In the Kitchen, 1977, which presented replica kitchen appliances that also figure as hybrid object/garments worn by female performers. It examines Chadwick's playful fashioning of the female body as a challenge to mediated constructions of the feminine in advertising and popular culture. This includes a contextualisation of her material and metaphorical critique of the spaces of the home in light of emerging feminist concerns of the 1970s. In order to further a retrospective understanding of the work, the article considers Chadwick's activation of sculptural couture, performative photography, animate sculpture and interior architecture to reflect on the shape-shifting identity of this singular work of art. The study of In the Kitchen calls for a renewed consideration within art historical and curatorial discourse in order to fully grasp the nature of the artist's self-directed sculptural experimentation.
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