Project 2

Theme

I was really inspired during our exploration of good vs. bad design by one of my examples of good design, the Le Smoking suit created by Yves Saint Laurent in the 1960s. In particular, it prompted me to inquire about the boundary between traditional male characteristics and the female persona, which then led me to revolve my drawings around the idea of androgeny. Though somewhat obscure and "out-there", in all four of my paintings, I attempt to explore a slightly varying aspect of the blurry male/female divide.

Emphasis and Economy

I chose to isolate my female figure in regards to centralized and controlling macho-materialistic (I'm not sure if that's a word) tools. Both in a literal sense and figuratively, this piece is a critique on the limitations of female creativity in the male-dominated realm. I'm not trying to advocate equal rights or make a political statement by any means; this is merely a physical representation of my own thoughts on the matter of androgeny.

Balance

This was inspired by taking a slightly religious and more traditional view on male versus female. The tree with the single dangling apple is my interpretation of Adam and Eve, Babylon, Forbidden Fruit, etc, etc, etc. Not actually having been brought up in a religious household, I guess this painting was created with a spiritual lense rather than as a Biblical reference. I liked the idea of having the single apple pulling the eye down and contrasting with the tree that is growing up and outwards to the left. To me, this creates a nice spacial balance to the stark whiteness of the lower right side of the square.

Movement

Perhaps the most literal of the four pieces and the most obvious direction stemming from my theme inspiration, I played with movement by creating the illusion that the coat tails and the train of the dress were spinning. The anonymity of the figure both draws attention to the actual pieces of clothing as well as disguises the need to ask if it is a he or a she. Rather, it does not matter if it is a male wearing a female skirt or a female wearing a male coat (and it's kind of fun leaving it up to interpretation...I still have not decided yet myself).

Repetition

Obviously, the repetition exists on the right side of the painting. However, my favorite part of the piece is the illusion of a very far background with a very up-close figure (again, a genderless unidentifiable). The ambiguity of the gown hides the gender of the figure and makes it so irrelevant to the point of interest. Also, the slight break at the horizon of the one arch creates an interesting (at least, to me) deviation from the redundant nature of the arches.