Honeyeater by Heidi Lustig

Heidi Lustig's Website and Instagram

Based in Port Macqurie, NSW, Australia

Honeyeater, Graphite and Oil on Wood Panel, 2024, 12x12

In my piece Honeyeater, mischievous New Holland Honeyeaters perch on and dine from a graphite maiden adorned with fresh sprigs of grevillea. One wields a flame at her throat in a suggestion that after the meal, she too will become a sacrifice. She looks at the viewer numbly, mouth parted enough for the birds to feed, not fighting them. In my work I like

to invert the dynamic from what is usually the human in power to the birds.

The surrender I'm drawn to depict in my work comes from a personal place of being a woman dealing with both secondary infertility and the intense sacrifice of motherhood. While surrender can seem to some like a weak position to take, I find that it takes strength and bravery. It is what allows me to get through really difficult times as a woman and mother, accepting the reality of what's happening and knowing that I'm giving all of myself right now, being at peace.

The ideas for my work and particularly for this piece Honeyeater come from feeling like I'm being sacrificed at the altar of motherhood, in both a beautiful and a grim way. I've had my body violated by so many medical procedures, had so many losses and many times seen my self-care slip away, and yet I regret none of it. I find that even women who are not mothers have also resonated with my work as they've experienced this giving of ourselves, suppressing of ourselves in order to care for and uplift others.

Installation and process shots