I am thinking of a woman who walked into the waters of the river with stones in her pockets.
I am thinking of the waters of my life,
I am thinking of the stones in my pockets.
All the women are born with stones in our pockets,
Empty them, empty them, empty them and swim.
These words, from an anonymous poem dedicated to Virginia Wolf who took her own life by drowning – filling her pockets with heavy stones and walking into the river near her home, form the basis of an exhibition curated by Acton Community Arts Workshop (ACAW).
In this ACAW commissioned piece, the visual interplay between the body, stones, and water contributes to the possibility of re-inventing the self, emptying the unwanted, and using stones as a metaphor for burdens. The photograph's reflected image suggests a dreamlike atmosphere evoking myth and magic rather than reality and rationalism.
