Five Artists

Rebecca Horn is a german artist who regularly does performances and installations.  Her works (above) mainly relate to the human body by creating or portraying extensions of the body.  These extensions explore themes like touch, sensation, communication, protection, and imperfection.  With in the picture above, on the far left is her work Körperfächer or, White Body Fan, which was part of a performance done in 1972.  The work resembles both wings and a cocoon.  I am reminded of the tale of Icarus and his desire to fly and be free, but also of the delicacy of his wings and his ignorance of such.  In the center is a still from two of her performances. Unicorn, done in 1972 and 1973 is probably her most popular work, portraying her interest in both modern and mythical subjects.  Above and to the right is an image of her work Finger Gloves, from another performance done in 1972.  While the fabricated fingers don't actually have sensation, strength, or fine motor skills, as they touch the object on the floor, in her mind and the viewer's mind there is a connection made that she is touching the object on the floor.  Such a thought is actually false and simply an illusion.

Caroline Broadhead is an artist from England who began as a a jewelry artist.  After a visit to East Africa in the late 1970's her works became dedicated to jewelry-art that responded to the form or body of the wearer.  An example of this work is shown to the left called, Alternative Jewelry Neckpiece, done in 1978.  Being made of silver, wood, and nylon, one can easily see how the nylon strands within the ring would form around a wearer's neck.  Within a decade, her focus turned more towards clothing and installations.  Her garments tend to deal with communicating the personality and inside of the wearer.  Which is ironic because clothes are worn on the outside of a person.  Her clothing works intrigue what is the wearer trying to hide beneath the garment?

 An example of this intriguing theme is shown to the right.  This is my favorite of her works which is called Exchange of Views.  Its is an installation made of intricate mirror cut-outs that resemble a net-curtain or some sort of lace.  As a viewr, I can choose to look at the intricacy of the design and allow my eyes to be guided about whimsically or to focus on myself fragmented in the mirror pieces reflection.  I love how this installation not only involves the viewer to see him/herself but also the room which he/she is standing in, glimpses the window of the gallery and what is going on outside and around the viewer.  I find it interesting that she chose to place the mirror pieces on a white wall, instead of black (which would have made the design more prominent).  I think the white wall was a good choice for presentation so the viewer has a harder time discerning between the wall, the design, and him/herself reflected and the viewer has to choose which to focus on.

Tim Hawkinson is an American multi-media artist.  He works with drawing, painting, sculpture, photography, installation, and film.  He 3D works often involve sound or portray sound in a scientific or inventive sense.  My favorite of his works is Sweet Tweet.  A simple fiberglass sculpture done in 2004, of a sweet young girl figure who is portrayed walking and singing with her eyes closed.  Out of her open mouth, five little birds sit on her elongated tongue, as if it were a branch.
I love the tenderness about this work.  I feel that the the birds on her tongue are an effective way to create an illusion of sound, or song.  As if the little girl's voice is an extension of her body.  I, as a viewer, look at this piece and hear sweet music.  I marvel at the phenomenon that while that this really is just a still, lifeless fiberglass object, I feel it is alive and interacting with me.

 

Ana Mendieta is a Cuban/American (mainly) performance and multi-media artist who developed her own form of art which she called "Earth-Body Art."  Earth Art and Body Art were both two forms of art which were popular in the 1960s. Most of her works are a combination of these styles.  She uses her own body as both the subject and the media in her works to explore the characteristics of gender and identity and explore relationships between cultures.  The pictures above are a part of her work, Silueta Series.  It is my favorite of her explorations.  As I looked through the various siluetas, I found myself thinking of where else could she do a silueta?  How else could her body be portrayed by the earth?  I love the unlimited possibilities behind the siluetas.  It is a effective way to extend her body and play with the idea of a presence by portraying it's simple and feminine form in various settings, sizes, and elements.

Jana Sterbak is a Canadian multi-media artist.  Her works deal with sexuality, power, and control as well as the relationships created between humanity and the technology.  My favorite of her works is Remote Control.  A metal frame designed to represent the bottom of a large, "poofy" dress.  It also has a strong resemblance to a cage or a prison with the way it suspends Sterbak so her feet hover daintily above the ground.  I feel like this work suggests that with high fashion (since this frame represents an 18th century dress), a woman becomes less human and more of a product of popular culture.  If I understand correctly, while the mechanical frame with which she is encased in is remote controlled, she has no control over the object or where she will go.  I feel this is a powerful message of identity.  While this mechanical cage-frame-dress is an extension of her body to the floor, it is also an extension of someone else, controlling her body.  An ironic thought....