Lucy Beech’s solo exhibition Hyperstimulation presents a new film accompanied by a text by Naomi Pearce.
The looping film, entitled Reproductive Exile, follows the fictional story of a woman undertaking cross-border fertility treatment. The film is set in private international clinic in the Czech Republic, where lack of legislation associated with reproductive rights sustains a booming fertility industry. Here the intended parent is introduced to ‘Eve’ (short for Evatar), a robotic version of the female reproductive system. Addressing gender bias in biomedical research and based on developments in reproductive science, ‘Eve’ is the future of drug testing in women and personalised medicine.
As the intended parent discovers more about her body’s incapacity to produce the hormones she needs, she becomes obsessed with Eve, confiding in her about the fertility drugs she injects daily, derived in some cases from pregnant horse urine and in others from concentrated urine of menopausal women.
This 30-minute film reveals an intricate network of invisible, co-dependent female bodies. These humans and nonhumans work, care, and provide for the protagonist’s reproductive journey.
This film contains sensitive material and may not be suitable for people aged under 16.
Lucy Beech’s Reproductive Exile (2018) is co-commissioned by Lafayette Anticipations – Fondation d’entreprise Galeries Lafayette, Paris; De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill-On-Sea and Tramway, Glasgow
Lucy Beech (born in 1985) lives and works in London and Berlin. Her films are often situated between documentary and fiction and engage with communities of marginalised women, structures of care and wellbeing and the economies deployed around these themes.
She has explored how contexts such as biomedicine, death, wellness, diagnosis and illness are framed, and linked to the production of visibility in relation to the female body.
15 September – 2 December 2018
De La Warr Pavilion,
Bexhill-on-Sea www.dlwp.com
Open every day, free
In her solo exhibition Hyperstimulation, Lucy Beech presents a new film
accompanied by a text by Naomi Pearce.
Characterised by the entrapment of a perpetual journey, the looping film, entitled Reproductive Exile, follows the fictional story of a woman engaging in cross-border, assisted reproduction and reveals the protagonist’s dependency on an intricate constellation of invisible, co-dependent female bodies, human and non-human, that work, care, constitute and provide for her reproductive journey. These bodies are linked by the production and sharing of animal and human sex hormones central to reproductive technologies.
The story unfolds in a private, international clinic built in a former public sanatorium in Czech Republic, where the lack of legislation associated with reproductive rights offers a degree of freedom to a diverse range of commissioning parents who are driven to the country by a range of social, political and economic forces, whilst sustaining a booming fertility industry.
Here, the protagonist is introduced to ‘Eve’ (short for Evatar), a three-dimensional representation of the female reproductive system. Based on research into recent developments in reproductive science, ‘Eve’ is the future of drug testing in women and personalised medicine.
Pre-clinical research on women’s health has historically involved mostly male-derived cells and male animals. These practices have resulted in a lack of information about female physiology. Eve addresses this historical absence of the female body in the history of its own treatment and, as the protagonist discovers more about her body’s incapacity to produce the hormones she needs, she becomes obsessed with Eve, confiding in her about the drugs she injects daily, derived in some cases from pregnant horse urine and in others from the urine of menopausal women. Focusing on this flow of bodily waste and bodily revenue streams, Beech addresses the power and agency of reproductive relations.
Lucy Beech’s Reproductive Exile (2018) is co-commissioned by Lafayette Anticipations – Fondation d’entreprise Galeries Lafayette, Paris; De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill-on-Sea and Tramway, Glasgow.
For images, interviews and press visits please contact Gair Burton on gair@picklespr.com or Sally Ann Lycett at the De La Warr Pavilion on sally.ann.lycett@dlwp.com +44 (0) 1424 229137 / 07889730733.
There are plenty of welcoming and good value B&Bs & boutique hotels in Bexhill. The De La Warr Pavilion regularly uses the following :
- By Rail
Direct trains go from London Victoria, Brighton and Ashford to Bexhill.
There are also trains from London Charing Cross, changing at St. Leonards Warrior Square and from London Bridge or Charing Cross going to Battle. Battle is only a short taxi journey away (15 mins approx).
Visit www.nationalrail.co.uk for up-to-date train travel information. - Taxis
Town Taxis: 01424 211 511
Parkhurst Taxis: 01424 733 456 - By Car
If driving from the London area:
Take the M25, then A21 to Hastings. Turn off at John‘s Cross and follow the signs to Bexhill.
OR
Take the A22 to Eastbourne, go across the Bishop roundabout to the A271 and follow the signs to Bexhill and the seafront. The De La Warr Pavilion is on the Marina.
From the Brighton area:
Follow the A27 out of Brighton until you arrive in Bexhill On Sea. - Parking
Please be aware the Rother District car park outside the De La Warr Pavilion operates paid parking until 7pm. After this time parking is free. There is also lmiited free car parking along the seafront.
Within the limits of this Grade One listed building, the De La Warr Pavilion strives to be fully accessible with a range of facilities to support your visit.
Assistance Dogs are permitted into the building.
Please contact the Box Office on 01424 229 111 to arrange a visit.
Facilities for disabled visitors
- Ramped access at the front of the building
- A low counter at the Box Office and Information Desk
- Disabled toilets on two floors
- A lift to all floors
- Accessible galleries on both floors
- An accessible Café
- Spaces for wheelchairs in the auditorium for seated events
- Ramped access in the auditorium for events during the day
- Ramped access into the Studio
- Two travel wheelchairs are available for use at the De La Warr Pavilion. To reserve, please call our box office and information desk on (01424) 229111 or ask a member of staff on arrival. The chairs are provided on a first come, first served basis and are intended for use inside the Pavilion. Please contact us for more information.
Facilities for blind or visually-impaired
- Large print season brochures
Facilities for the hard-of-hearing
- An T-Switch induction loop in some areas of the auditorium (please indicate when booking as this facility is not available on the balcony)
- British Sign Language interpretation tours of the building and exhibitions are available on request.