Maggie Heaslip
A Sheela-na-gig is a carved stone relief depicting a naked female figure deliberately gesturing to or displaying exaggerated genitalia. These striking carvings are found throughout the British Isles and parts of Europe; however, the greatest concentration survives on the island of Ireland.
While their exact meaning is debated, one widely accepted interpretation is that Sheela-na-gigs functioned as protective symbols to the people, shielding them, they believed, from harm and ill intent.
In pagan and medieval belief systems exaggerated or grotesque imagery was often believed to ward off evil. **Some scholars believe these ideas could date back much further to very ancient 'goddess' worship traditions and associated practices**.
The explicit display of the female body may have held powerful symbolism, as well as being understood as apotropaic – intended to repel harmful spirits, bad luck, or the ‘evil eye’. Just as gargoyles guarded churches and cathedrals Sheela’s may have served as spiritual guardians placed at thresholds, above doorway or windows, watching over and protect inhabitants and keep evil from passing through.
In merging this protective symbol with a modern CCTV camera, Maggie’s work reimagines Sheela as a contemporary ‘guardian’ of the peace. The catch however, is that in placing Sheela’s unapologetic body beside the scrutiny of modern surveillance, we are both viewer and viewed, and as the viewed, we must question who is doing the viewing and for what reason?
Cameras, facial recognition, and data collection are now such a normal part of daily life that we barely notice how these, as well as our phones, screens and other technologies are tracking and linking us to... where we go, what we do, and who we interact with.
This **non-consensual** data mining has blurred the line between our personal freedoms and safety, and the invasion of our privacy, as it feeds big tech’s greed for powerful and lucrative information data bases. These potent tools are being used to manipulate and influence how we behave, who we connect with, and even what we believe.
With no uniform regulation, clear limits, or transparency about who controls this data or how it’s used, it raises an important question: do we still have personal privacy, or has that boundary been breached and erased without us realizing it?
Maggie Heaslip is a visual artist based in Dublin. Her interdisciplinary practice explores the idea of the viewer becoming the viewed, the gazer becoming the subject of the gaze, and what that means in today's high tech world. Her hand built ceramics are influenced by ancient 'Sheela-na-gig' protective carvings which she then merges with various forms of modern surveillance technology. Maggie has previously exhibited work in **The Place Project**, IMMA Studios, Dublin (2023), and **Down the road, around the corner**' at Pallas Projects/studios (2026).
