Dealing with this assignment concerning the body and identity, its hard for me not to mention this artist, though I know he's not on the list. He uses his own body as a vehicle for exploring and creating characters, literally morphing his face in real time expressisonistically. I love his work.
Sunday, February 27, 2011
artist research #10
shirin neshat
Neshat's work comments on Islamic cultures from a traditionally Western feminist perspective. These women she depicts are constantly barraged by the muzzle of guns and sacred text- equally as dangerous, in my humble opinion.
artist research #9
nancy burson
Holy shit, Burson is awesome. I've been very interested in science and physics recently, reading alot of Brian Greene and 13.7 over at NPR. Her website makes me think that she's some sort of religious sciency nut job, but that makes me love her work even more. She composites human faces together to form one singular identity- the biological identity of humanity (or religion). It would be very interesting to see her create a similar identity for space and the universe.
artist research #8
Do Ho Suh
Suh's work strikes me because of its relationship to space. He deals with multiplicity and population, specifically how people occupy space and how the government interacts with that fact. His use of multiples is extremely effective. It seems to me that he says that a single person is irrelevant, but as a group people are powerful. No man is an island.
artist research #7
hung liu
Liu seems to paint and collage over old anonymous photographs. She is commenting on her own seemingly unknown or lost cultural heritage. I can identify with this- I'm from Mexican and French decent, but can't really fit into either category. I like that she's searching for her own identity through the medium of others and culture.
artist research #6
rachel whiteread
Whiteread's sculptures focus on negative space rather than actual space, playing an interesting trick on the eye. These sculptures explore the space around an object rather than the object itself- the space itself assumes the identity of the object it encompasses.
artist research #5
Yasumasa Morimura
Morimura inserts himself into images of cultural or historical fame, assuming the identities of the people originally displayed. He almost always poses as a female, complicating his gender identity and the context of the original work. I really dig this. I'm very interested in gender roles and identities, and it seems to me that Morimura hits the nail on the head here.
artist research #4
cindy sherman
Sherman is famous for assuming unspecified "roles" in her self portraits, taking on the identity of her created characters and capturing them as if they were stills from a film. In the context of film, Sherman would be called an "auteur," that is an autobiographical director who has a hand in every element of the film process including writing, directing, cinematography, and mise en scene (like Woody Allen, Alfred Hitchcock, or Clint Eastwood). Sherman creates her sets, she makes her costumes, she develops her character, and she shoots the image. She has a hand in every aspect of her new identity.
artist research #3
frida kahlo
Frida's many self portraits are tinged with traditional surrealism. They are all descriptive of her own mental and emotional states and problems; she bravely illustrates her fragility, infertility, vulnerability, and sexuality without restraint.
artist research #2
kerry james marshall
These paintings describe the African American community in contact of its otherness- Marshall paints the figures in typically offensive "blackface," illuminating what many people probably see when they look at a black community. It's not a pretty picture, its not a social ideal, he's simply describing the ugly truth that already exists.
artist research #1
lucian freud
i've always been very attracted to these paintings- this is the grandson of the famous Sigmund Freud, and his influence is readily visible. The psychological relevance of these portraits is evident in their skewed proportions. If eyes are the portal to a tormented soul, then these oversized eyes describe neurosis.
mr. franco
http://carpetbagger.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/26/james-francos-oscar-prep-captured-by-james-franco/?partner=rss&emc=rss
While the article itself doesn't offer much, it makes me think about the lifestyle of James Franco and how I'd like to emulate it. Mr. Franco is quickly becoming adept at blending genres, artforms, and performance into what I believe is a single over arching art work. He is a jack of all trades, being an actor, story teller, writer, artist, director, and god knows what else. He knows he has these skills, and he combines them to create something much bigger. Fame is just a vehicle for him to better express himself. I'm looking to mix medias and blur lines much like this.
While the article itself doesn't offer much, it makes me think about the lifestyle of James Franco and how I'd like to emulate it. Mr. Franco is quickly becoming adept at blending genres, artforms, and performance into what I believe is a single over arching art work. He is a jack of all trades, being an actor, story teller, writer, artist, director, and god knows what else. He knows he has these skills, and he combines them to create something much bigger. Fame is just a vehicle for him to better express himself. I'm looking to mix medias and blur lines much like this.
Thursday, February 24, 2011
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