Though they have all addressed different issues, the three artists Cui Xiuwen, Cindy Sherman, and Frida Kahlo study gender issues in their contemporary societies. In reference to her "Angel" series, Xiuwen states how young women are more and more becoming pregnant in her local society and around the world. Though her pieces do not seem to place a value judgment referencing this trend, she does mention that she feels it is becoming a problem. By her repetitive images of the same young woman in this series, I think she is depicting a redundancy of young pregnancy. The title "Angel" is an interesting title, because it could have several meanings. One meaning could be the obvious innocence of youth and the beauty of pregnancy. Another could be the death of youth in exchange for motherhood. Regardless, the settings have an airy, "heavenly" quality that adds to the "angelic" pieces.
Like Xiuwen, Frida Kahlo addresses the subject of pregnancy in several of her pieces, however her pieces are much less hopeful and light. Kahlo has the overt subjects reflecting her own challenges in her life. While Xiuwen's pieces challenge the "problem" of youth pregnancy, Kahlo's pieces address the complete opposite-- her miscarriages and infertility. In "Henry Ford Hospital," Kahlo depiction of herself includes images of biological parts necessary for pregnancy, however they are only attached to her by red lines-- perhaps conceptual umbilical cords? This is clearly a tangible representation of her suffering over the loss of her child.
Sherman addresses the depictions of women in film, and does not really address fertility and motherhood like Xiuwen and Kahlo. However, like Kahlo, Sherman repeatedly includes her own image within her work. Kahlo created several self-portraits, but many of her works contained other subjects where her presence in the composition was not the main focus. A particular piece of Kahlo's that I think parallels Sherman's work is "The Two Fridas," because it depicts her "wife" persona in the public sphere next to her heartbroken persona. Sherman's work challenges the whole concept of the public sphere personas to which women of her time are often expected to confine themselves.
20 March 2009
16 March 2009
.jpg)
06 March 2009
"The still must tease with the promise of a story the viewer of it itches to be told" --Cindy Sherman
Gregory Crewdson
In Gregory Crewdson's work, meaning is present but ambiguous. Subjects are pensive, but not particularly attached by apparent interaction with one another. I am intrigued by the repetitive usage of nudity as a motif. I am personally drawn to beautifully forlorn art, and I feel the tone of Crewdson's work staying with me as I struggle to pick up on the intangible portion of the narratives.
Teun Hocks
The work of Hocks is not as emotionally heavy as that of Crewdson, though they are similar in their approach to the photograph with a staged, "cinematic" concept. They also work with the subject of the mundane. Hocks observes everyday occurances in a fashion reminiscent of the playful Dada movement, as opposed to the dramatically questionable and mysterious settings captured in Crewdson's work.
Jeff Wall
I think that Jeff Wall's rebuttal to David Shapiro's question about the criticism of Arielle Pelenc was particularly deep, because at first, like Shapiro, I was unsure of how I felt about the lack of fragmentation in Wall's art. As a highly detailed person myself, I thrive on art that contains so many different elements to it. However, the unity of a single composition forces me to reevaluate the "law" of the avant-garde movement to abandon anything before it as obsolete. I am satisfied that he seeks to continue to explore the importance to the early artists and the value of the unification constructed without the Modern movement of fragmentation.
Cindy Sherman
Sherman's film stills are obviously paralleled with the works of the previous artists in the presence of the photography/cinematic element of the content. The subjects of her pieces--mostly women--are captured in a way that encourage the viewer to understand that there is more going on beyond the photo, whereas Crewdson's work is capturing it within his pieces as a questionable moment in a narrative plot. Before reading the interview, I considered that maybe Sherman is a Guerilla Girl, and her interview has reinforced my theory on this mystery.
In Gregory Crewdson's work, meaning is present but ambiguous. Subjects are pensive, but not particularly attached by apparent interaction with one another. I am intrigued by the repetitive usage of nudity as a motif. I am personally drawn to beautifully forlorn art, and I feel the tone of Crewdson's work staying with me as I struggle to pick up on the intangible portion of the narratives.
Teun Hocks
The work of Hocks is not as emotionally heavy as that of Crewdson, though they are similar in their approach to the photograph with a staged, "cinematic" concept. They also work with the subject of the mundane. Hocks observes everyday occurances in a fashion reminiscent of the playful Dada movement, as opposed to the dramatically questionable and mysterious settings captured in Crewdson's work.
Jeff Wall
I think that Jeff Wall's rebuttal to David Shapiro's question about the criticism of Arielle Pelenc was particularly deep, because at first, like Shapiro, I was unsure of how I felt about the lack of fragmentation in Wall's art. As a highly detailed person myself, I thrive on art that contains so many different elements to it. However, the unity of a single composition forces me to reevaluate the "law" of the avant-garde movement to abandon anything before it as obsolete. I am satisfied that he seeks to continue to explore the importance to the early artists and the value of the unification constructed without the Modern movement of fragmentation.
Cindy Sherman
Sherman's film stills are obviously paralleled with the works of the previous artists in the presence of the photography/cinematic element of the content. The subjects of her pieces--mostly women--are captured in a way that encourage the viewer to understand that there is more going on beyond the photo, whereas Crewdson's work is capturing it within his pieces as a questionable moment in a narrative plot. Before reading the interview, I considered that maybe Sherman is a Guerilla Girl, and her interview has reinforced my theory on this mystery.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
