Marcy Palmer

“Pennyroyal has been used to induce abortion for centuries but is lethal in the wrong dose.” from the series ‘One in Four’

“Maybe they will try an unsafe method of abortion, and come to physical harm, or even die. Maybe they will undergo pregnancy and have a child but at significant personal or familial cost. At the least, they will incur the cost of losing control of their lives. The Constitution will, today’s majority holds, provide no shield, despite its guarantees of liberty and equality for all.” 
– Justices Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kagan, dissenting from ‘Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health Organization’

These sentences stood out to me from the text sent by Ashima Yadava, and inspired this work, “Pennyroyal has been used to induce abortion for centuries but is lethal in the wrong dose.” I photographed plants that have been used as abortifacients for hundreds of years. Without safe methods for abortion available, these often-deadly concoctions were what women had. The Pennyroyal in this piece was sourced and photographed in Dallas, TX, where Roe v. Wade case began, embedding the history of this controversial issue into the image. The delicate and precious nature of the image on rice paper and with gold leaf are metaphors for how a precarious and important issue is, which impacts women’s rights and health. The small amounts of gold represent hope for those who were able to use these methods with success, however many of the botanicals have been unreliable or lethal in the wrong amounts or without proper guidance. The Guttmacher Institute has stated that nearly one in four women under age 45 has had or will need an abortion. This is a community issue that affects everyone, not just those in need. Let’s take care of our community.

Bio

Marcy Palmer’s work explores themes of transcendence, history, and social justice through metaphors of nature and science. Marcy has an MFA in Photography & Related Media from the School of Visual Arts and studied painting, sculpture, and photography with a B.S. in Studio Art from Skidmore College. Marcy’s work has been exhibited at various spaces including The Brooklyn Museum of Art, The Griffin Museum of Photography, The Center for Photographic Art, and other spaces. Her work has been written about in The Boston Globe Sunday Edition, Humble Arts Foundation, Lenscratch, and other publications. Marcy released a book with Yoffy Press titled “You Are Eternity, You Are the Mirror '' which was chosen as a Photo-Eye 2020 favorite photobook, The Luupe’s Favorite Woman-Made Books of the Year, and Deep Red Press’s Favorite Photo Books. She lives and works in Dallas, TX.