Artist Statement

I have thoroughly enjoyed the challenge of Fine Art Honours at RMIT this 2020, I have applied to RMIT to study master by research in 2021. My focus area of study is mental health, lived experience and sensory/talking therapies as well as connection. I believe connection through body, mind and soul is the elephant in the room of trauma and abuse. Honours is a research project year; embedding my focus on lived mental health experience in my work allowed me to use my own body/mind as the site of praxis research. Honours have taught me much more than artistic aesthetic skills and knowledge, I have enjoyed the opportunity to grow and self-reflect.
IN 2004 my psychiatrist told me that nothing would help me, I would live with the symptoms of paranoid schizophrenia for the rest of my life – well, I am so lucky to tell that man, he was wrong!!!

Artist Bio

Jenny Hickinbotham uses various creative mediums, written word, word art, moving image, animation, digital collage with photography and sound art (and my NDIS package supports me to learn singing). Her art can be activist, personal, sensory, thought-provoking, visually political, humorous and feminist. She admits she does love to tell a story, to provoke curiosity and to keep you thinking by applying ambiguity.
She is so happy living in Gisborne regional Victoria with two fabulous Tenterfield Terrier dogs, 12 chickens and 10 baby chickens, 7 baby ducks and 9 adult ducks, as well she cares for three beehives and unknown numbers of bees!!