The Venus Papers by Lydia Towsey

The title sequence of The Venus Papers takes as it's starting point Botticelli's 15th Century painting, 'Birth of Venus' where Venus is depicted arriving on a shell at a Cypriot beach. Transported to the 21st century UK; Lydia explores how Venus would respond to what she would find and what would she do next?

In the sequence's connecting poems, Venus's progression from innocence to experience is mirrored across numerous arrivals, departures, journeys and landscapes; from a dancing mother to a psychopathic Barbie, murderous mozzarella and a road trip across the Spanish Badlands. By viewing Venus as everywoman, outsider, traveller and immigrant Lydia explores how women in particular are viewed and affected by cultural, political pressures in contemporary Britain and beyond.

Lydia Towsey is a poet exploring her Hungarian, Welsh/British heritage and her experience of growing up in the multicultural city of Leicester. She draws on her experience as an artist's life model to challenge the idea of the 'passive nude' and discuss the way we look at ourselves, the world and each other. Lydia has won a Decibel commission and been shortlisted for the Bridport Poetry Prize. She has spoken at the House of Lords and presented at Plymouth University's Zombie Symposium.

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