Best of Nudity: Carly Marchment

Drawn to unusual and angular positionings of the female body, Carly Marchment finds beauty in movement. With careful consideration, her works celebrate the human condition with bright and bold candidness. “The focus of my artmaking is to sensitively communicate with people,” says Carly. “For them to experience an emotional response and connection. I am dedicated to this entirely.” For Carly, this connection between the movement and control of the body is deeply personal. “People usually don’t realise that I have a progressive genetic neuromuscular disease which is a form of muscular dystrophy,” she tells. Her art has hence progressed as a way to advocate for people who have physical disabilities and to give transparency to the vulnerabilities of her own body. How limbs, flesh and bone connect with an environment is a constant point of interest for Carly as she photographs, draws and eventually paints her subjects, exaggerating and extending certain gestures as she goes. Inspired by Australian female artists such as Loribelle Spirovski and Yvette Coppersmith, Carly’s work has a distinctly feminine focus, yet speaks to the vulnerabilities and sensibilities of all humankind.

Feature image: Carly Marchment, Erica. Oil on canvas, 146 x 106cm. Courtesy: the artist