For Meg Gallagher, motherhood has been a journey of self-discovery and empowerment. “I had a newly gained appreciation for my own body after becoming a mother,” she says. “But I was also battling with how I would ever feel sexual again.” Through art, Meg has rediscovered her sexual identity. Creating
sensuous images of the female form inspired by a collection of vintage Playboy magazines from the 1960s and 1970s – a treasure trove of unapologetically sexual poses – Meg reappropriates images constructed under the male gaze to embrace her own interpretation of feminine power. “I want to celebrate the nude figure as the phenomenon that it is – to give the viewer a moment to get out of their head”, she says, “to let their minds wander and imagine themselves doing the same twists and curves with their own bodies… because is there anything better than being naked?”
Feature image: Meg Gallagher, Blue lady Two. Acrylic, oil pastel on denim, 100 x 135cm. Courtesy: the artist