As a mature woman my work is the result of frustrations in relation to others’ expectations and misconceptions of me. Taking up space, unapologetically, has allowed a performative version of myself to emerge. I am interested in this commitment to performativity by mature women on social media sites. My images are made quickly and with materials and props that are to hand. The resulting photographs include filters and digitally drawn elements that build a persona, and my working process can be seen as a playground for the exploration of potential irreverent storytelling, both real and imagined. The swirling farrago of sensations that is menopause slaps you in the face, hard, and lets you know, unequivocally, that you are on a one-way street with no turning circle at the end of it. So, having less life ahead of me than there is behind compels my heels to dig into the earth so that the dizzying swiftness with which I am travelling along this one-way street, towards the exit from which th
Very relatable. I am a 49 years old woman who believes beauty is not age dependant and it's also not dictated by society. When I was a teenager I always believe the future would be towards a liberation from this need to 'watch our image' according to what society dictates. But it seems to have gone totally the opposite way. II am very interested in this concept together with the concept of images who show true natural beauty of people regardless of what society deems as 'not pretty'. I'd love to see more images on this theme.
ReplyDeleteDo you have a significance for the duality of this image? Why black and white and colour? I'm curious.
ReplyDeletei like this image as it has a lovely balance between the understated and the possibility of multiple meanings...advertising images/the more natural, the look addressed to the camera, the different connotations of black and white/colour, different ways of "presenting" the self, genderfluidity etc. i find as an old woman i look out most of the time and am very conscious of my eyes as i have medication for them and have had one cataract removal operation. i look out and this is part of myself and my relation to the world. I look in a mirror or see a photo of myself just in a normal everyday scene and i think that's not me! my hair colour is gone, i look ancient, it doesn't really bear much relationship to how i feel as i look around the word, read a book, think about art, walk around etc. a look from an external source directed at people shows an exterior and sometimes that's all it does. I think most of the artwork in this blog is trying to go beyond that "exterior" and get to something deeper. Paradoxically, by using mostly 2D images, we are trying to show that these images offer something multidimensional. A live performance as part of a project, especially in response to a specific site, also opens up more possibilities of sound, space, interaction with light, weather conditions, unexpected events/conditions etc etc
ReplyDeleteInteresting image, I am also interested in the way we represent ourselves as women, always showing our best side as it were.
ReplyDeleteIm irritated and frustrated by the feeling of watching myself in a general / majority way and appealing to this look. Im caught and trapped in something possibly dominated by the male gaze. Im liberated by seeing my self in an intimate , vulnerable way sometimes confused and surprised by what come out when I intuitively perform only for me. I like where your coming from.
ReplyDeleteEsther, it's an interesting point the fact that we often learn how to see ourselves through the eyes of society. I have been progressively trying to step away from that look upon myself and see myself with the fresh eyes of someone who's free to be whatever the hell they are. Self portraiture is helpful for this. We can explore whatever we want to explore with it. It's a space of freedom that is only fully achieved when we add a performative element to it.
DeleteThe performative element you mention is so important. All our lives can be considered performative given the way our behaviour and how we present ourselves to the world is constantly modified - even before birth (in the minds of others and how they talk and think about us before we arrive). So is the performative element you highlight above about attaining autonomy over how we present ourselves? I am very interested in any thoughts about this.
DeleteThat's a very good point Demeter, and yes, I think that's exactly it, you managed to put it beautifully in words. I feel like we are handed roles all the time and often grow up feeling constrained as to having to stick to those roles and perform them according to some mysterious set of unwritten rules that we somehow intuit. Performance as and art form and self-portraiture might help us step out of those roles and reclaim what it is that we want for ourselves.
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