I Have No Shadow

Attending the LACMA College Night on Thursday, April 5, was not only my first time at College Night, but also my first time visiting the LACMA. Because I currently intern at the USC Fisher Museum of Art, I understand some of the behind-the-scenes action that goes on and every day I become more and more fascinated with it. When I finally arrived, I was in a state of shock of how majestic the buildings were outside and how beautifully curated the exhibitions were inside. One of the pieces that caught my attention was a painting by Kay Sage called, "I Have No Shadow." It was in the exhibition, "In Wonderland: The Surrealist Adventures of Women Artists in Mexico and the United States."

Far off in the image, there is a couple whose figures cast shadows. It is said that Sage saw herself not as one of the those figures, but as a part of the stone cliffs, "existing, but confined by [her] circumstances." The plaque says that "Sage devoted her adult life to others - living through the needs and demands of first her mother and then her husbands - she could claim she had no physical presence that would create a shadow." Although this piece is part of an exhibition that explores the thoughts and ideas of women surrealists, I realized that it also speaks to many other people besides women. Everyone has felt this way in some way or another. Because of our individual differences, many people feel that they are cast out for who they are, whether it's based on gender, sexual orientation, religion, age, or physical appearances. At some point, we have all wanted different circumstances that we knew we could never change.


Despite the gloomy mood of the image, I think it tells an incredibly powerful story that we can all relate to and learn from. It teaches us that everyone has their own personal struggles and that since we are aware of that, we should be slow to judge and quick to understand. We are all fighting the same battle against the negative things in our lives; how much easier would it be if we could simply fight together?