REVIEW: "Bodily", by Eilis Regan

Fall through a rabbit hole and enter Bodily: a space governed by a complex web of its own logic. Everything has a place, an order, and it all follows dream-like rules. Rocks and dollhouse furniture hang in the air, delicately suspended by string. Individual letters of the alphabet are pinned to the wall like insects for your perusal, and you must lean in to decode what is around you. 

 You step around the arresting installation in the center of the room and gaze at the gingerbread molds hanging so far down that they rest against pieces of slate on the floor. You crouch down to look closer and notice the figurine of a bunny in an overturned medicine cabinet. Tiny rocks fill a crack in the floor. Your eyes follow trails of rocks, bottle caps and spools of thread as they lead you to houses and milk crates and cartons of mushrooms. It might remind you of childhood, when you would play with whatever could be found.

Bodily is a tremendous success in examining the connections between earthen materials, plastic waste, and female gender performance. It requires intimacy for understanding: you must get close, you must weave through objects, and you must carefully choose a path. When confronted with the physical manifestations of domesticity and femininity, we must ask ourselves what we truly believe. It is a thought-provoking and delightfully odd journey. Regan’s practice has evolved to encompass many disciplines, showing her refined study of environmental minimalism and eco-feminism.

Bodily is a solo exhibition created by Eilis Regan for her MFA from University at Buffalo in Studio Art. It was on view at Gallery at Seneca from April 3rd through April 18th, 2026.