Yvonne Kendall

Yvonne Kendall's exhibition About artichokes and other hearts at the Kunstmuseum Marburg in Germany, 2004, took as its theme the humble artichoke. The artichoke was taken as a symbol that speaks of fertility and protection and was the progenitor of the later work of the same name that was included in the McClelland contemporary sculpture survey & award, 2005.

In Kendall’s words: 'This work grew around me while I was pregnant with our son. Literally everything was growing. The bigger I got, the more the artichokes grew, until I was surrounded by a whole field of them. The artichoke is a symbol for fertility. The hard outer leaves protect a soft inner heart. The bulbous are an ancient delicacy, but less known is the fact that artichokes also produce a wonderfully exotic flower. Both aspects of the artichoke’s life cycle ae represented here. The artichokes are growing from a foundation of old bedding and clothes, wrapped in old curtains, so are being fed from a domestic source. Nurtured in a soft and warm home. Standing in groups they become figures with varying personalities; interacting with each other like family members.'