Stephanie Shively, a native New Yorker, earned her BFA in Photography from the State University of New York at New Paltz. Shively’s work is fueled by her personal experiences and innermost fears, which she transforms into a universal visual language through hand bound photo books. She has taught photography at the Santa Fe Boys & Girls Club in New Mexico, the Photographic Center Northwest in Seattle, Washington, and the University of South Carolina in Columbia, South Carolina. Shively is passionate about book arts, pushing the boundaries of photography, and nonprofit outreach that focuses on youth and the utilization of art as a mechanism for social change. She currently resides in Columbia, South Carolina with her husband and son, where she is working towards her MFA in Studio Art at the University of South Carolina.
Artist statement: Motherload
Motherload is an exploration of the growth and overwhelming change that manifests when expecting. Pregnancy, despite being awkward, uncomfortable, and stressful, presents itself with certain expectations. We imagine the ideal couple entering this phase of life to be full of joy, smiling carelessly while creating a baby registry and caressing a lovely round belly. Any doubts, worries, leaky nipples, and urinary incontinence should be ignored and kept private. Pregnancy is certainly a beautiful experience, but it scales a complex emotional gamut that is not honestly represented in our culture. These photographs capture the complexity of my own pregnancy and its impact on my relationship with my husband, Tim.
In conjunction with Motherload is an edition of five hand-bound photo books housed in handmade clamshell boxes along with four beeswax covered pigment prints.
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