SOPHIE STANDFORD

ABOUT

absent presence:   Meno Mosso    Piano    now he is gone        my Mother and Me        one hand washes the other        /ˌpɛrɪˈmɛnəpɔːz/    stabat mater    

/ˌpɛrɪˈmɛnəpɔːz/

transitional objects of griefa woman’s lament*

selfless
wake-up call
loss of fertility
final realisation
loss of possibility
question of timing
worthless feelings
this dictating body
most fundamental loss
when life has revolved around partner and child
empowerment tinged with sadness
period of bereavement
physical cycles cease
reaching middle age
hormonal process
sense of loss
liberation
release
selfish


2020
Single channel video with stereo sound, 4’01”
Location: Suffolk
/ˌpɛrɪˈmɛnəpɔːz/ is a video that documents the moment of realisation, in a blind, frantic flurry of mixed emotions, as blood washes away. An odd sense of loss tangles with a bizarre desire to celebrate. This is the end of a menstruating cycle. The hand tries to control the blood and keep it in place against the sound of time passing.

/ˌpɛrɪˈmɛnəpɔːz/ is a work that deliberately challenges the taboo of menstruation and menstrual blood hidden deep within cultural heritage, being considered unclean and tainted; feelings which are transferred to the menstruating woman herself. A cultural heritage where menstrual blood is laden with embarrassment and disdain, revulsion and pity, pain and connotation.

*Personal experiences of menopause shared on healthtalk.org
© Sophie Standford, 2025
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