Galerie Gregor Staiger is pleased to present “She, the cat’s mother”, Lucy Stein’s second solo exhibition at the Milan gallery space. It will feature a new body of paintings and tile works, conceived specifically with the gallery in mind. Drawing from Celtic studies, European mythologies and feminist theory, each piece offers a glimpse into a world where ancient wisdom and contemporary discourse intersect. “She, the cat's mother”, an old English expression invoking a dialectic between the universal and the particular, serves as a guiding thread, reminding us to question any suggestion of a universal female experience. As the viewer approach the works, the interplay between the seen and the unseen, the known and the mysterious, the conscious and the unconscious become progressively clearer. Carl Jung’s inquiry on primitive myths and the modern man - displayed in the essay “Man and His Symbols” from 1964 - provides the backdrop for Stein’s work, which seeks to bring to the surface a subterranean psychic world. Talismanic elements such as eyes, moons, birds, and ancient iconography are recurrent in the exhibition. Within this realm of symbols, the artist also pays homage to the ancient Goddess culture of Cornwall, invoking the wild spirit and natural landscapes of the region, with local minerals used as glazes. Themes of transformation and primal instinct resonate with archetypal figures and folkloric narratives. Shame, for instance, features a pubescent medieval princess grappling with intrusive thoughts represented by a monstrous duckling emerging from her hair (body) / head (mind). This evocative imagery prompts reflection on the complexities of femininity, echoing the artist's investigations into female rage. Water emerges as a powerful metaphor for the unconscious mind, as seen in Brigid, where melted sea glass suggests the dilations of the all-seeing female eye.