*Magdalena Abakanowicz Red Abakan, 1969 sisal and mixed media Courtesy of the National Museum, Wroclaw, Poland Photo courtesy of Magdalena AbakanowiczWACK! A large red cloth woven vagina greets the unanticipated visitor entering the exhibition. This is Magdalena Abakanowicz’s Abakan Red, an enormous coarsely woven organic mass pulsing feverishly amidst the atrium of the Vancouver Art Gallery. Drawing from the names of several feminist protest groups of the hippies’ era, WACK! is an exhibition which explores the relationship of art and the feminist revolution of the late 1960’s and 70’s. The Vancouver Art Gallery is the only Canadian gallery featuring this collection of works of more than 120 artists from 21 countries. The exhibit is physically divided into several feministic themes such as “goddess”, “gender performance”, “body trauma”, “female sensibility” and “gendered space.”
The exhibition was highly interactive where artists used media that appealed to the multiple senses. Artists explored the female body and roles, and oppression of race, class and social acceptance through traditional paintings, photography, narrative and performance videos, writing, textiles and more. For example, as a “private art performance in real time”, artist Lynn Hershman personified herself as Roberta Breitmore, a fictional divorcee who moved to San Francisco. On and off, during the period of 1974 to 1978, Hershman would dress up as and lived the life of her persona to the extent of even obtaining a valid drivers licence and a personal cheque book under the name of Breitmore. Other artists like Mimi Smith used household objects to create montages depicting the confinement of women to the house and their obligation to perform mundane repetitive housework. Many artists used their own body as the subject in physical demonstrations or photographs. They would take serial photographs about their body or parts of their body during a diet or labour phase to demonstrate the mutability of a human body over time. However, do not assume that the artists are the sole contributors to the artwork – visitors are invited to participate in Lygia Clark’s “interactive art” where we can add to her chandelier of flyers and notes, attach large rubber bands to her elastic net or try on her nylon net t-shirts. Clark wants to create a unified experience for all genders and races through her “social sculptures.” Males were not forgotten in this feminist themed collection. By casting males in a plaster and scaffolds on wood, ropes and concrete blocks, Colette Whiten wanted to reverse the roles of females and males through physical limitations of the male body in “Structure #7.” With much controversy embedded in each of the pieces, WACK! was truly meant to be experienced with our contemporary understanding and not of their era of creation when they were overshadowed by political and social equality protests.
Set aside a day for WACK! as this is one exhibition not be rushed and definitely not to be missed. The exhibition is presented at the Vancouver Art Gallery from now to January 11, 2009.
The exhibition was highly interactive where artists used media that appealed to the multiple senses. Artists explored the female body and roles, and oppression of race, class and social acceptance through traditional paintings, photography, narrative and performance videos, writing, textiles and more. For example, as a “private art performance in real time”, artist Lynn Hershman personified herself as Roberta Breitmore, a fictional divorcee who moved to San Francisco. On and off, during the period of 1974 to 1978, Hershman would dress up as and lived the life of her persona to the extent of even obtaining a valid drivers licence and a personal cheque book under the name of Breitmore. Other artists like Mimi Smith used household objects to create montages depicting the confinement of women to the house and their obligation to perform mundane repetitive housework. Many artists used their own body as the subject in physical demonstrations or photographs. They would take serial photographs about their body or parts of their body during a diet or labour phase to demonstrate the mutability of a human body over time. However, do not assume that the artists are the sole contributors to the artwork – visitors are invited to participate in Lygia Clark’s “interactive art” where we can add to her chandelier of flyers and notes, attach large rubber bands to her elastic net or try on her nylon net t-shirts. Clark wants to create a unified experience for all genders and races through her “social sculptures.” Males were not forgotten in this feminist themed collection. By casting males in a plaster and scaffolds on wood, ropes and concrete blocks, Colette Whiten wanted to reverse the roles of females and males through physical limitations of the male body in “Structure #7.” With much controversy embedded in each of the pieces, WACK! was truly meant to be experienced with our contemporary understanding and not of their era of creation when they were overshadowed by political and social equality protests.
Set aside a day for WACK! as this is one exhibition not be rushed and definitely not to be missed. The exhibition is presented at the Vancouver Art Gallery from now to January 11, 2009.
*where you can visit WACK!: http://www.vanartgallery.bc.ca/the_exhibitions/exhibit_wack.html
-cup of red
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