Yucky

Yucky is a group exhibition that explores the personal and political complexities that exist as part of disabled experience.

People seeing me and yet pretending not to see.

The fear is palpable sometimes.
They fear me because I’m yucky.
Yeah, drooling and weeing all over the place.
Like you ables don’t.
— excerpt from Fear by Sam Petersen

Yucky is a group exhibition that explores the personal and political complexities that exist as part of disabled experience. The exhibition’s premise and title has been led by artist Sam Petersen in conversation with ACE.

Featuring new and recent work by a mix of pivotal Australian and international contemporary artists, the exhibition centres the perspectives and experiences of those who are disabled, chronically ill and neurodivergent.

Yucky challenges the social assumptions and biases of able-bodied audiences and exposes the barriers faced by people living with disabilities, including within systems intended for ‘care’.

Yucky has been developed by Sam Petersen, facilitated by Rayleen Forester, Grace Marlow and Patrice Sharkey, in conversation with public program curators William Maggs and Hen Vaughan.

Feature Image: Sam Petersen, Wee, 2020, digital photograph. Courtesy of the artist.