Lamby, Denise (AUS)
Strength
Denise has been a finalist in the 2020, 2022 and 2024 iterations of Paper on Skin™. In 2020 she won the Tasmanian Hearing and Implant Centre – Dr Kellie Walker’s Encouragement Award for New Life.
Denise’s website describes her practice as finding ‘…beauty in what others discard—transforming reclaimed materials such as plastic, paper, teabags, textiles and aluminium can tabs into unexpected forms. Through repetition and labour-intensive techniques, my work invites close inspection and quiet reflection. Each piece is an act of reinvention, aiming to recycle, upcycle or repurpose with purpose. By intercepting items destined for landfill, I challenge viewers to see hidden potential in the everyday. My hope is to surprise, to connect, and to inspire a lighter footprint—allowing audiences to recognise fragments of their own lives in the work.
This is reflected in the themes and materials of Strength, as described in the design documents: “Strength and protection illustrated by the seemingly weak material of paper. The delivery has been unpacked, the protective paper rests discarded on the floor. The repetitive machined cuts inherent of the paper packaging remain expanded and preserve the shape as if the contents are still within. Strength is the embodiment of the material.
Mirroring the silhouette of an hourglass, the discarded packing paper has been reimagined to accentuate the curvature of the female figure. As a female artist I feel we have moved into an era constantly faced with ‘what is a female’ and the fluidity of gender identity…..I am not concerned with what gender you are just that you are a kind and caring human being.
Tea bags used from top to toe and in-between. Paper is perceived as such a delicate, weak and non-resilient medium and yet can be fashioned into items and symbols of such strength.
Elements
Corsetry - Conformity, support, restriction, feminine. Protect, uphold, strangle
Heels - Power, wealth, authority, or workplace hinderance.
In ancient Egypt and Greece heels were worn by both men and women of social status
Empowerment for women in male dominated industry, they command attention, exude confidence, challenge the notion that femininity equates to weakness. The high heels embellished with discarded tea bags - a throwback to 1980’s fashion and women in the workforce.
MATERIALS
Packing paper, teabags, elastic
See the Work on Film
Photos Credit: Grant Wells Photo