HANNAH WARD
  • Violent Empathy
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    • Bitter Things
    • To Need
    • Dual Nature
    • Drain
    • miscellaneous works
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I view my drawings as ceremonial narratives, told for the purpose of healing and nourishment. My work examines the intricacies of religious phenomenon and ritual in relation to the natural world. I am interested in exploring the relationship between the frailties of the tangible body and the resilience of the spirit. I combine local forest wildlife and fragments of the human figure in order to reimagine religious iconography. These  dismembered forms are laboriously detailed and rich in sensual color. 

Through careful rendering and arrangement, bodies become vulnerable altars, assigned meaning. These tableaus depict delicate and affectionate interactions with violent or unnerving undertones. They speak to sensations of intimacy, anxiety, and grief without context. My work is informed by magical, alchemical, and religious practices, as well as the tarot, macabre historical events, and a lifelong interest in medical anomalies and injuries. Visuals are often dictated by my personal journey with recovery, along with insights I have explored through ritual, meditation, yoga, and alternative medicines. 

Recent works articulate a graceful struggle between the sensations of control and surrender. I explore how the construction of images serves as an invocation and generates meaningful connections. ​These drawings chronicle an awareness that is both haunting and elegant, a space where physical boundaries quietly blur. They justify actions of strength and tenderness despite necessity and apathy.

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All images and content © Hannah Ward, 2023
  • Violent Empathy
  • Building Prayers
  • Sanctuary
  • Archive
    • Limen
    • Ask For Answers
    • Gravity
    • Bitter Things
    • To Need
    • Dual Nature
    • Drain
    • miscellaneous works
  • About
  • Shop