Direction Arles, in the south of France, where the International Meetings of Photography continue until September 25. Spotlight on a collective exhibition which presents the projects of 71 major figures of the feminist avant-garde of the 1970s.
200 works line the route of this exhibition. Each image, each video seems to denounce the injustices of a resolutely patriarchal society. The works are signed by artists from Europe, North America and Latin America mainly. Christoph Wiesner is the director of the Rencontres d’Arles: “ They were on different continents, but they ultimately used the same language and the same vocabulary, had common practices even though they did not know each other. What is very interesting is to see how photography has also served as a means of emancipation. »
All these photos are from the Viennese Verbund collectioncreated in the 1970s. It shows the work of avant-garde photographers and visual artists, including the French Orlan.
“ The Verbund Foundation has a huge collection that is uniquely based on the 1970s and the feminist revolution. So they bought a lot of works from him, and these works rotate around the world. From the beginning, the foundation has tried to enlighten precisely all these women who, most of the time, died without any visibility. » continues the director of the Meetings.
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Most of the exhibition is made up of black and white photos. The work of the American Francesca Woodman occupies a central place in this vast panorama. The photographer, who died tragically in 1981 at the age of 22, depicts her rage in the face of the aesthetic standards of the time. Among the other strong images, the self-portraits of the Cuban Ana Mendieta, who photographs her face glued to a window distorting her features. The exhibition ends with a self-portrait of Orlan. The French artist creates a second female body from her own body.
Explanations by Christophe Wiesner: “ This photo is called “Orlan gives birth to her-M’AIME”. It’s not a woman’s body, it’s rather a body like a work of art, like a mutant body. The idea was really to give birth to art. We don’t know what body it is. »
The exhibition is organized in several chapters as ” Housewives – mother – wife “, Where ” Confinement – emancipation “, or “ Diktat of beauty – female body “. It is presented in a place called General Mechanics, on the site of the former SNCF workshops. Perhaps a way of reminding us that the work on gender equality is far from over.
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