Rodney Smith

Erwin Blumendeld

Erwin Blumenfeld (1897 – 1969) was a famous American photographer of German origin.

In the 1930s, he published collages mocking Adolf Hitler. In 1936, he emigrated to Paris. With the German occupation, he was interned in a concentration camp in 1940 because he was Jewish. In 1941, he could escape to the USA.

In the 1940s and 1950s he became famous for his fashion photography, working for Vogue and Harper's Bazaar, and also for artistic nude photography. In the 1960s, he worked on his autobiography which found no publisher because it was considered to be too ironic towards society, and was published only after his death.

Inspiration from 'Surrealism: The Poetry of Dreams'

Dorothea Tanning. Un tableau très heureux (A very happy picture), 1947

Paul Delvaux . L'Acropolis (The Acropolis), 1966

Erwin Blumenfeld. Manina ou L'Ame du torse (Manina, or the torso's soul), 1934

just got home from...

Surrealism: The Poetry of Dreams

René Magritte. Les marches de l'été ( The summer steps), 1938

René Magritte. Le modèle rouge (The red model), 1935 

Pablo Picasso. Femme couchée (Reclining woman), 1932

Dorothea Tanning. Chambre 202, Hôtel du Pavot (Room 202, Hôtel du Pavot), 1970

Victor Brauner. Loup-table (Wolf-table) 1939, 1947

Reference Artist: Norman Jean Roy

http://www.ohlalamag.com/en/2008/02/vanity-fair-hol.html

Martha Rosler film: Semiotics of the Kitchen, 1975

Elle Macpherson by Sharif Hamza for LOVE #4

Vogue by Steven Klein

Reference Artist: Alexia Sinclair

Reference Artist: Charlotte Mann

inspired!

http://www.charlottemann.co.uk/work.html

I AM

Gordon Bennett
born Australia 1955
Self portrait (But I always wanted to be one of the good guys) 1990

Colin McCahon
New Zealander 1919–1987
Victory over death 2 1970

‘I AM’ is borrowed from a well known art work, Victory over death 2, 1970 by New Zealand artist Colin McCahon (1919–1987) . It is also a direct reference to biblical stories in the Hebrew Scriptures. This rich interplay of words and images raises many questions. The simplicity of ‘I AM’ suggests a universality of thought. It is open to self revelation, self redemption and a myriad of rich images of self that can be built upon. McCahon uses ‘I AM’ to question notions of faith. Bennett uses it to question notions of self. ‘I am that I am’, Exodus 3:14 is God naming self. It is at once a name revealed and something like the refusal of a name. If God cannot be contained, can humanity be contained by stereotypes and labels?

I decided that I was in a very interesting position: my mind and body had been effectively colonized by Western culture, and yet my Aboriginality, which had been historically, socially and personally repressed, was still part of me … I decided that I would attempt to create a space by adopting a strategy of intervention and disturbance in the field of representation through my art. Gordon Bennett ⁶

Bennett determines in Self portrait (But I always wanted to be one of the good guys) that labels and stereotypes have no relevance to a healthy construction of identity.

http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/gordonbennett/education/02.html

Reference Artist: Yves saint Laurent

The YSL Cocoon

The cocoon dress, designed by Yves Saint Laurent in 1965, is one of the most famous bridal couture creations in history. Some say it symbolized the oppressive nature of marriage in the 1960s, while others believe that its phallic shape and the way that it wraps and ties the female figure in ribbons tell a story aboutwomen on the verge of the sexual revolution.

Reference Artist: Carrie Collins

Carrie Collins, The Burger Bride, 2007

There really is no necessary significance to “The Burger Bride.” I was having a casual conversation with Mayu (the textile designer) a few months back and she mentioned how she had been wanting to make hamburger fabric. Then I convinced her that if she did I would make a gown out of it with a matching headdress. The bride part sprouted from the idea of it being a “one-piece, one-day” exhibition.Wedding gowns can be so elaborate and detailed, yet only seen for a portion of one day. I think that is pretty strange. I think a lady dressed in hamburgers is pretty strange as well, so I decided to combine the two and see what happens. I chose a live model because having a live model also presents a performance piece, where she (the model) has her own attitude, stance, walk, and presence that can only add to the costume.

Carrie Collins

Reference Artist: Sandro Botticelli

The Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli, 1485

Aphrodite (Greek: Ἀφροδίτη, IPA: /apʰrodíːtɛː/; English: /ˌæfrɵˈdaɪtiː/; Latin: Venus) is the Greek goddess of love, beauty, and sexuality.