Excerpts from:

Near where my great aunt was born (being seen...disappearing), 1992, video and installation

3 video monitors, 12 small framed video stills, 2 large photo prints.
Synopsis: This piece explores the role, status and social construction of 'the woman artist.' The installation follows the journey of the artist in and around Glasgow, in which she dressed as her great aunt, and pieced together and/or imagined the story of her life. "(Jessie) was an artist, she lived in Glasgow, she didn't marry, and she remained in Scotland when the rest of the family moved to Canada in 1908. Jessie comes to symbolize, for me, the 'disappearing woman', since she shared with so many women through the ages a slide into obscurity. I wanted to reconstruct an episode of lost history, and perhaps create for myself a role model, a historical mentor." Also completed as a single channel videotape, being seen...disappearing, 1993.

Autonomous Eye, 1995, videotape with Pauline Cummins, 314.02

Synopsis: In this collaborative video piece, Pauline Cummins and Sandra Vida take control of the means of viewing and representation, revealing an identity and a sexuality which may exist in opposition to the constructed view of "woman-as-object". The visual, defined by the mirror image, the fragmented, fetishized body, is for women a confining cage. The work confronts the viewer with several frames within frames, inviting the viewer to participate by looking again, by reconsidering "points of view", by re-examining the limitations of existing frames.

Triad, 1995, three channel video installation

Synopsis: The Triad installation consists of one central large monitor or projection, with two smaller monitors on each side. On the central tape we see a woman carrying a suitcase enter a hotel and check into a room. She is waiting for someone, probably a lover, whom we never see. The woman unpacks a number of mysterious objects. On the left-hand tape, we see rushing water and incidents that relate in an impressionistic way, the Celtic myth of Diarmaid and Grainne, ancient lovers who were forced to flee from a jealous chieftan, Fionn mac Cumhaill. On the right-hand tape, we see the more personal story of the artist's father and his early death. Images from the two side tapes intrude upon the central tape at intervals. "Triad represents an archetypal and resonant paradigm. The secret meeting, the hidden relationship, the love triangle - repeated throughout the long history of western songs and stories. But I was also inspired by another model, perhaps a throwback to a more ancient ideal - a more positive spin on romance, on the agency of women, and the possibility of enduring love." Also completed as a single channel videotape.

Kitchen Freedom, 2000, multi-media installation

Hearth and Home, 2002, multi-media installation

Bower, 2005, multi-media installation

Bower, 2005, performative installation

Still credit: Kitchen Freedom