DISCURSIVE ARTIFACT / MATERIAL PRACTICE

Vulva Plushie

Inspired by the Material Anatomies exercise within the Making~Body Studio developed by my supervisor, Dr. Sophie Gaur, I sought to explore a part of female anatomy through the making of a representative material artefact. This project involved crafting a scaled-up, three-dimensional, tangible representation of a vulva as a mechanism to understand the menstruating body. Layers of fabrics in distinct colours representing the hymen, labia majora, and labia minora, were sewn onto a cloth base stuffed with soft fibres to form the plushie. To add to the sensory experience, I used a bell for the clitoris, while menstrual blood was represented by a piece of coarse maroon fabric.

Found materials and sewing equipment used to fabricate the vulva plushie.

Individuals parts, layered and sewn together by hand.

The completed Vulva Plushie with the addition of coarse fabric to represent menstrual blood.

“To take multisensory forms of knowledge (like touch) seriously, we can’t only stay in the realm of reading and interpretative analysis. Analytic attention to touch reminds us that it is not a passive act. Every touch always touches back.”

Ballestero, A., & Winthereik, B. R. (2021). Experimenting with Ethnography: A Companion to Analysis. Duke University Press.

Presented to my peers, the vulva artefact was touched and played with, in the process sparking curiosity and inquisitive questions about menstruation and female sexual health through sensory engagement.