Art & Authenticy

“I want people to be drawn into the space of the work. And a lot of people are like me in that they have relatively short attention spans. So I shoot for the window of opportunity.” These are the words of Barbara Kruger, the creator of the untitled piece of a picture of a black and white picture of Marilyn Monroe under a layer of transparent turquoise satin screen displayed in the International Center of Photograph. While the other pieces in the exhibition showed photographs of their subjects with various kinds of clothing, this is the only piece that gives the photograph clothing.  Not only did this thin piece of covering enhance the lure of the rather abstract picture of Marilyn Monroe by giving it a mysterious air, it also calls attention to the attraction emitted by the picture by overlapping it with gigantic bold letter that spells “WANT ME.” Kruger’s work on what was original a simple print from an old magazine certainly caught my attention and held it for long beyond my normal span of attention. Continue Reading »

After a tour through the International Center of Photography, nothing was more striking than the group of European young men showing off their “expensive” clothing. Little did I know about the significance of clothes in European fashion and culture. What was amazing about this video clip was that they were showcasing random young adults off the streets and into a private hotel room. Now I don’t know about you, but that sounds like a serious commitment to undertake. Nonetheless, these “youngsters” were more than eager to showcase their stylish, expensive and bizarre wardrobes to the international audience. They discussed how “important” one’s appearance was in Europe. Basically, what you wore defined your social status and therefore, they more than willing to spend that extra money to “look good”. You would think that these boys were rich in order to wear these types of apparel-WRONG! Contrary to what I had thought, they were struggling to make a living. Their measly salary is barely enough to support them in terms of food and rent, however, they do not let that obstacle deter them from heavy spending. To give you an idea of their budgets, most of these young men make around 800 euros a month. Factor in rent, food and other living expenses and they barely have anything left over. The next thing you know, one of them pulls out a 2,000 Euro suit right in front of the camera! It amazes me how much the clothes matter to the European culture-especially the younger age group. Nonetheless, these desires show just how much these values mean to them.

Perhaps the most catching piece of artwork in ICP for me was Yto Barrada’s The Belt, Step 1 to 9. This piece shows a woman with the same expression in nine different pictures. At the beginning, she seems like a rather big woman, however, after viewing the rest of the pictures it is clear that she is just hiding layers of fabric. What really caught me about this piece was the reason behind the smuggling of fabrics. According to the writing next to the piece, “Ceuta’s economy depends in large part on the sale of such smuggled goods.” Continue Reading »

It was definitely interesting to go visit the International Center of Photography. I’ve never been exposed to photography used in such a wide range of mediums, and each photographer had a story to tell. It made looking at each photograph like reading a new book. Continue Reading »