Deidre But-Husaim, Pollymorph 8
Deidre But-Husaim's use of mixed media (painting and digital manipulation) is particularly suited to the hybrid subjects of her series Pollymorphs and Strangelove. My personal favourite bears the iconic face of a Marilyn Monroe-type 1950s pin-up, but Pollymorph 8 is as bemusing as she is beguiling. Here, the familiar image of a pretty young blonde confidently poised, replete with red lips and red nails, is rendered alien by her own mirror-image, as the viewer is confronted by the questionable double-pleasure of conjoined twins. It is precisely the duality of the image that fascinates, with its oscillation between the alluring and the revolting. Pollymorph 8 both appeals to the stereotypical male fantasy of two women together, yet challenges that appeal through her deformity, the nature of which in turn seems to evoke a strangely narcissistic desire. Moreover, the near-perfect line of symmetry that bisects the women through their common arm, attached as they are on one side from shoulder to buttock, is consistent with that classical ideal of beauty only to the point of its monstrous doubling. Ultimately, the almost innocent candy-coloured pop feel is offset by the freakishness of the subject and the unsettling questions she raises regarding what is sexy and what is socially acceptable as sexy. So while this conjoined cutie is doubtless twice as much fun, she may well leave the viewer questioning under what strictures gentlemen really do prefer blondes.
Born in 1959, Deidre But-Husaim is visual artist based in Adelaide, who has exhibited at various galleries around Australia. In 1997 she began studying digital imaging and went on to complete a diploma in studies at Adelaide Central School of Art.
Tara Woolnough works for a publishing house in London. She graduated with a degree in Classics from Durham University and also holds an MA in Literature, Religion & Philosophy from the University of Sussex.
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