Iron: Day 3 | Heavy
filed under: IronI feel heavy, saturated.
Like a cannonball in my stomach, like something is gestating in my blood.
Getting stronger
I have felt all day like I could vomit up a girder.
I read that iron was used to keep away the magical folk: elves and faeries. In many cultures, iron cannot be used for ceremonial practices, or to cut significant materials, because it is seen as a magic-killer or will offend the spirits (1). My body rejects the iron – there is too much, it is draining me to have it inside me. Though it is the element of Mars, and has the lucky number 5 associated with it, it weakens me. My period begins. I am nauseous all day. The iron has to come out. I am like a river sick from too many mine tailings, sluggish and rust-filled.
(1) The Golden Dawn, J.G. Frazer. Papermac (1995)
Kat Austen is a person. In her artistic practice, she focusses on environmental issues. She melds disciplines and media, creating sculptural and new media installations, performances and participatory work. Austen’s practice is underpinned by extensive research and theory, and driven by a motivation to explore how to move towards a more socially and environmentally just future. Working from her studio in Berlin, Austen is currently EMAP / EMARE Artist in Residence at WRO Art Center, Artist Fellow at Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies, Potsdam, Artist in Residence at the Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences, University College London and Senior Teaching Fellow at UCL Arts and Sciences. She is a member of the bbk, an inaugural member of the London Creative Network, co-founder of the DIY Hack the Panke collective in Berlin and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. https://www.katausten.com