Of the 100+ uses of the the suffix ‘-algia’, most are medical, denoting pain in a specified region of the body– myalgia for muscle pain, dentalgia for tooth pain, neuralgia for nerve pain. Nestled amongst these are nostalgia, a longing for the past or a homesickness for a life that once was, and solastalgia, a homesickness for the home you still inhabit– pains of the mind and the soul.
In ‘-Algias and Phantasms’ the two pains, physical and emotional, intertwine and communicate, layering former joys with present sufferings and the struggles of the past with dreamscapes of the future. The collages assemble the artist’s drawings, photography and prints from over the years alongside images from childhood, items from their home and mementos collected throughout their life. Eugenie’s work mirrors the convergence of pains of the mind and body, and the way reality is overshadowed by ghosts of past ways of being and apparitions of the imagined future, and the constant presence of real and mythical histories.
Eugenie is a 25 year old multidisciplinary artist in Naarm/Melbourne. They make work about their experiences of chronic illness, queerness, and mental health, and the complexities of the relationship between mind, body, and identity, exploring the hidden details that exist in their intersection. They are currently studying for their honours in fine art at RMIT.