Lorna Simpson is a conceptual photographer born 1960 in Brooklyn, New York. She is famous for her photographic work that addresses social issues such as gender, culture, and identity and how they affect interactions and relationships in American society. The Museum of Modern Art’s online collection includes a piece of Simpson’s artwork titled May, June, July, August ‘57-’09 which is a set of 307 individually framed photos. In this piece Simpson mimics a collection of authentic photos from 1957 that she found on eBay of an random woman in suggestive poses, each old photo is paired with a gelatin silver print featuring the artist herself in place of the original woman. Because the feminist artist is known for her work concerning the black female identity, the unknown woman’s photos alongside her own photos have no extra contextual information in order to encourage the viewer to create their own assumptions about the subject based on their appearance and the stereotype that apply.
I find this collection interesting because the artist is using historical artifacts in a contemporary fashion. The original photos in this collection are obviously posed but also have a candid quality that is apparent in the background information that Simpson also recreates in her renditions that I find successfully executed as well as aesthetically pleasing. The delicate physique of women from the iconic 1950’s era is replicated in Simpson’s photos that I find comforting as a viewer.
No comments:
Post a Comment