Helen Chadwick - Laura Smith

Helen Chadwick (1953–1996) embraced the sensuous aspects of the natural world, breaking taboos of the "traditional" or "beautiful." Her sculpture, performance, and photography is radical, provocative, and often steeped in humor, and employs unusual, sometimes grotesque materials—bodily fluids, meat, flowers, chocolate, and compost among them. She quickly became a leading figure among Britain’s postwar avant- garde, becoming one of the first women to be nominated for the Turner Prize. A dedicated teacher, she mentored the majority of the Young British Artists. She was also involved in the artistic community at Beck Road, Hackney, whose residents included Maureen Paley, Richard Deacon, and Genesis P-Orridge.In the KitchenPiss Flowers