I didn’t expect much from the “Pictures of Women” exhibit at the Museum of Modern Art. I was never a fan of art, so when I arrived, my pessimistic attitude prevented me from enjoying the exhibit to its full potential. However, certain pictures were able to shine through to me and make me stop and think for a while. The first picture to turn my head was “Woman with Flag” by Tina Modotti.
When I first saw “Woman with Flag,” several elements of the picture distinguished themselves. The photograph comprises a woman holding a large dark flag. It’s a simple photo, but what first caught my attention was the woman’s posture. She was standing straight, with her head held high. Her stance reflected her strength and independence. The picture was taken in the 1920’s, so one could assume that the liberties of women at the time were being suppressed. To see the woman stand with such pride made a very strong statement.
The second element of the picture that caught my attention was the woman’s face. Her expression was very stern and angry, which is understandable if she is indeed a representation of women’s rights. Her face was very strained, as if the woman is in pain. The anger and anguish displayed on her face inspires an amount of sympathy and respect for her and what she symbolizes.
Another interesting aspect of the photo was the flag that the woman was holding. It was huge, and it had no symbol on it; it was a solid color. This indicated that she was representing more than just a nation, but an idea. Also, the solid color of the flag reflects the solidity of the idea it represents. The size of the flag suggests that the idea is rather large and important. The picture was taken in Italy, so if the woman held an Italian flag I would expect her represent nationalism. But since she has a solid flag, she must represent something deeper.
Seeing the woman’s strong and prideful stance in combination with her huge solid flag in an exhibit about female photographers, my conclusion was that the woman’s flag represents femininity. The photograph symbolizes pride in being a woman. The woman’s powerful posture makes the picture more powerful as a whole, and demands respect for all women from anyone who sees it.
Among the many pictures at the “Pictures by Women” exhibit, only a few caught my attention. Among those few, only a couple pictures are still fresh in my mind. The picture that most stood out to me in the exhibit was “Genital Panic” by VALIE EXPORT (her name is intentionally upper-case.) This picture is aggressive, extreme, and daring, which is everything I like to see in art.
“Genital Panic” is perhaps the photograph that I enjoyed the most at the exhibit. This piece is a collection of six posters made from the same photograph. The photograph shows a woman sitting on a platform in a crowd while holding a machine gun. Her hair is messy and her clothes would be considered men’s clothes at the time the photo was taken. Her face was very stern. This photograph seemed to me like a bold form of empowerment. Her posture, her clothing, and the gun give her the impression of a rebel, and since she was dressed something like a man, I assumed she was rebelling against male-dominated society. Considering that the picture was posted in public squares, I thought it was a strong form of rebellion.
However, I later listened to the commentary about the picture from the MoMa website and realized she was wearing crotch-less pants, leaving her vagina exposed. The vagina changed things in the picture for me. Now the woman’s message became extreme, and it all made much more sense. The reason she was wielding a gun was to protect herself, or rather, her sexuality. Displaying her genitalia in front of a crowd makes such a bold statement because she’s showing the men in her male-dominant society that she’s proud of her sexuality and is willing to defend it with force. I reconsidered that she posted this picture all around the city and developed an even greater respect for her. Being comfortable enough and proud enough with her body to post that photograph enhances her message and makes an even bolder statement about the desire of women to be treated as equals. The radical nature of the photograph is what makes it so strong.
From “Genital Panic” and a few other photographs, the MoMa exhibit changed my perception of photography. While my stance on modern art in general remains the same, I have developed a new respect for photography. I think of it as more than pressing a button in front of something pretty. Photography is used to convey emotion, depict ideas, and make statements, which is just as much of an art as anything other medium.
