In Conversation with Delphi Campbell.
As International Women’s Day approaches, we reflect on the voices and stories that shape the discourse on gender, health and identity. One such powerful voice is Delphi Campbell, the artist behind Unwanted Flesh, a deeply personal body of work that explores chronic illness, medical misogyny and the lived experience of a female body in pain. Through an intimate conversation, we delve into the artistic journey that brought her exhibition to life.
Delphi Campbell, a multi-disciplinary artist based in Cardiff, specialises in soft sculpture and sewn objects. At nineteen, Delphi relocated to Cardiff and graduated with a First Class degree in Fine Art from Cardiff Metropolitan University. In 2022, Delphi earned her MFA in Fine Art from the Ruskin School of Art at Oxford University, and subsequently undertook a fellowship with the British Council among other achievements. Delphi’s practice explores self-portraiture through pink, fleshy and soft mediums, using her art to delve into personal experiences and themes related to the body.
For Delphi, the decision to translate her medical journey into an artistic form was both organic and necessary. “When I started Uni (studying Fine Art at Cardiff Met), I began receiving diagnoses for some of my conditions. As I settled into my practice, making work about being sick was a natural progression – it became a healing process.”
One of the most striking elements of Unwanted Flesh is its exploration of medically induced menopause, an experience rarely discussed in mainstream conversations about health. “Menopause is a strange experience, especially when induced medically at a young age. My body changed in ways I’m still adapting to. I began building Unwanted Flesh the same week I started menopause, so it became a natural extension of my endometriosis journey.”
Delphi’s work serves a dual purpose: self-expression and representation. “I’d still make the work even if no one saw it, but it’s great when they do. It’s hard to vocalise some feelings, and so much of the disabled experience remains unseen. I wanted to share both the good and bad.”
The themes of identity, embodiment and illness are deeply intertwined in her work. “My illnesses have shaped my body, personality and life experience in fundamental ways. They are part of who I am, and my practice is about exploring and sharing that.”
The exhibition’s physical structure mirrors the visceral nature of endometriosis. “Endometriosis can cause tethering, where scar tissue fuses organs together. This concept was in my mind while constructing the work. I used mesh and chiffon to recreate the depth and entanglement of tissue, allowing viewers to see each ‘scar layer.’”
A powerful phrase from the exhibition, “feasting on my flesh,” encapsulates the relentless toll of chronic illness. “Sometimes, it feels like my body is eating me alive. While I avoid feeding into stereotypes of disability, I also want my work to be truthful. Disability isn’t a singular, tragic narrative – it’s a spectrum of experiences.”
“I’ve long used visual hyperbole – at one point, I ran around in a neon pink morphsuit. There’s a camp, queer element in how I caricaturize things. The exaggeration allows me to express pain and embodiment in a way that words often fail to.”
From glowing red light installations to iridescent fabrics, texture and materiality play a vital role in Unwanted Flesh. “I spent months sourcing reflective, shimmering textiles to create a bodily, gut-like aesthetic. The red glow has a sexy, healing quality, while the layers of gauze replicate scar tissue depth.”
Chronic illnesses like endometriosis are often dismissed or misunderstood, a reality that Delphi is determined to challenge. “It took me ten years – the average wait time for an endometriosis diagnosis – to be taken seriously by doctors. This delay isn’t unique; it’s a systemic failure.”
Ableism and sexism intersect in medical misogyny, an issue that disproportionately affects women of colour. “We need more research, more funding and more visibility. It’s unacceptable that there is five times more research into erectile dysfunction (affecting 19% of men) than into premenstrual syndrome (affecting 90% of women). Women’s health matters.”
For Delphi, International Women’s Day has always been a source of empowerment. “It’s a day that proves, over and over, that I can do anything. Now, it’s about fighting for women who don’t have the privileges I do.”
What does she hope audiences take from Unwanted Flesh? “More than anything, I want them to know they are not alone. If this work can inspire or validate even one person’s experience, then it’s done its job.”
As we celebrate International Women’s Day, Unwanted Flesh reminds us of the power of storytelling, the urgency of advocacy and the necessity of amplifying women’s voices – especially in spaces where they have long been ignored.
To learn more about Delphi and her artwork listen to her talk below, or visit her website: https://www.delphicampbell.com/.
words by: Olivia Griffin
Featured image courtesy of Delphi Campbell. No changes have been made to the image.