2021 Studio Arts
Cosima Gilbert | Sebastian Durham Gucci Flashtrek (floral, silk) silk, canvas, silk and cotton thread Gucci Flashtrek (with crystals) (porcelain) porcelain, stoneware glaze Replica sneakers made of hand embroidered and hand stitched silk, hand painted porcelain. I have sampled an eighteenth century pattern from Marie Antoinette’s book of fabric swatches, and a 1700’s blue and white pattern from Europe’s first porcelain house- using historical reference to gesture to luxury history, Versailles and aristocracy as icons of wealth, virtue as a luxe signifier and embroidery/porcelain as mediums rich with time and skill, shifting the point of luxury from logo or monogram to investment effort and valuable material, gesturing to high class patronage of artistry, the collectable and the collection. Historic weight of white in luxury objects- impossible cleanliness, pristineness, potential for decay and destruction- but continued purity. Inutile objects, things with no use beyond decoration and display, display of wealth- the ability to own something with no use, but with beautiful visual and material value. The contemporary designer shoe- a blatant symbol of wealth of money- also the luxury industry on a global scale. Meissen’s (the afore-mentioned porcelain manufacturer) appropriation of Asian ceramic designs- the interrelated relationship of East and West, the importance of Asia to both historic and contemporary luxury markets (silk, the silk road, global consumerism) Constricted Genders Inkjet photograph This work was created to explore the contrasting stereotypes; ‘hysterical women’ and ‘boys don’t cry’, and ways in which they impact the individual. I have examined similarities and differences between these gender binaries and considered the consequences of such constraints when employed by society to categorise people. The focus of the folio has been to examine different aspects of the gender stereotype or different effects these restraints have upon an individual. I began my process by interrogating commonly expected gendered reactions, including boy’s crying and women screaming. However, as this process developed so did the potential directions, leading the work towards an exploration of more complex reactions. These included questions about women’s identity and ways in which women become two versions of themselves; an overt social expression of self and an internalised identity which exists as the truth about who they really are. My process also explored the dilemma for men, who are equally restricted by physical expressions of masculinity which constrain them from expressing emotions. This work explores the ways in which the limitations of gendered stereotypes for both men and women are internalised by the individual and impact their function within society. |
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