3/6/2023 0 Comments Lynda affinity publisher![]() What I saw interested me, but I felt, to use your words, no engagement with it. I was not familiar with any of her other work. (Similarly, I hope to manage to go to London to see the Barbara Kruger exhibition). We went to see the exhibition last week because I am in the process of doing an essay on the culture wars in America in the 70s and 80s, and Benglis' early work, the 'sexual mockeries' and the centrefold, was all I knew of her work. Olga, I know what you mean and I don't think we disagree on Benglis. Her use of precious metal also provokes questions about value, taste and the difference between economic and aesthetic worth. Beglis' use of gold in these works suggests both weight and weightlessness, drawing attention to surface while using its reflective qualities to 'conceive form with variations in light'. Her gilt 'torso' wall-based sculptures, which are often titled with Greek names such as Minos and Perseus, marry the curves of the human body with references to Greek mythology and Hellenic sculpture, motifs which are also explored in her series of 'pleats' which twist and unfurl into dramatic baroque shapes. While her 'sparkle knots' can be read in relation to bodily forms and gestures, Benglis has also likened them to floral wreaths hung on the doors of Greek houses during May Day celebrations. Greek motifs appear in different forms in Benglis' work. As well as drawing from Greece's art and architecture, Benglis finds equal aesthetic inspiration from its culture and traditions listing the 'Caryatids on the Acropolis, the holiday cookies, the braided Easter bread, the gold and gilded elements from the Orthodox religion' as important influences. Her father was the son of Greek immigrants from Kastellorizo. ![]() Greece has been an enduring source of inspiration for Benglis. The material has the ability to both absorb and give off light and as Genglis has observed : 'I'm after that translucent quality we see in sunsets and sunrises and the moon when it's full. The Graces is made from polyurethane which Benglis squirts out of a pressurised can - a gesture that alludes to the act of painting. The Graces, 2003-05 (cast polyurethane, lead, stainless steel) Her influence can be seen in the work of many younger artists working today: the plastic 'blobs' of Roxy Paine the sexually suggestive props of Matthew Barney the floor pieces of Polly Apfelbaum the ambiguous shapes created by Franz West the work of Cindy Sherman. Yet, like every woman throughout history she has been marginalised and her place in contemporary art history has been neglected. Her work has challenged the status quo and she has produced some of the most iconic works of art from the 20th century. Her approach to art making is process-oriented, challenging the traditions of sculpture and painting, with a unique approach to form exploring the physical dialogue between work and viewer.īenglis emerged as part of a generation of artists forging new approaches to art in the wake of Abstract Expressioism, Minimalism and Pop Art. Working across a range of materials, ranging from beeswax, rubber, polyurethane, bronze, cloth, paper and ceramics, Benglis creates abstract sculptures which explore the physicality of form and how it affects the viewer. This was not typical of her work before or since, however. The photographer Cindy Sherman has described her college-age encounter with the Artforum ad in all its audacity, as 'one of the most pivotal moments of my career' In response to episode, Benglis made five bronze casts of the dildo which she titled Smile.Īn explicit parody of gendered relationships, of the tradition of the 'pin-up' girl images in magazines, and a confrontation of the overt male bias in the art establishment, this was an iconic work, and a good example of the 'culture wars' that raged in America during the 70s and 80s. Outrage followed when the advert appeared and five editors resigned. When the magazine declined to publish the image, Benglis paid for advertising space. Benglis is most well known for a piece of work she did 40 years ago when she posed naked and oiled, wearing just a pair of sunglasses and yielding a double-headed, oversized dildo, intending it for publication in Artforum magazine.
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