sarah6

Comment

Comment by Resident Curator on September 22, 2015 at 8:01pm

Curator’s Comments:

 

Sarah (6) is a wry portrait, with paradoxical and competing aesthetic sensibilities. Scott Smith’s comment a couple years back reaches to the crux of the juxtaposition between candid portraiture and artifice.  The vaguely bored expression of the subject highlights the need for another artificial level of excitement to enthrall and captivate. While there are other similar pictures assimilating face paint on the subject, the glittery gold lipstick for me more readily communicates heightened cosmetic appeal.  It does alternately occur to me that this series- by way of Sarah 4 & 5 isn’t actually about societal expectations about beauty, but the rawness of the face paint on the youthful subject is no less startling.  Sarah 5 is slightly reminiscent of Ana Mendieta’s self portraits using ritualistic smearing of blood.  While that may be too visceral or aggressive a read of these works, they do trigger primal associations.

Comment by Leah Koontz on October 21, 2012 at 5:19pm

Thank you!

Comment by Scott Smith on October 21, 2012 at 5:17pm

Like it, Leah. Pure beauty contrasted with reality check.