OUTSIDE OBSERVATION
"My work is connected to perception. I am fascinated and intrigued by the relationship between the appearance of ordinary objects and the meaning that is socially ascribed to them. In exploring this connection between observation - what we see, and representation - what we believe it means, I have found that much of this connection is taken for granted. It remains largely unspoken.
The materials I use are those most taken for granted of all: the objects we use in daily life without ever considering their purpose: plastic bags, paper napkins, rubber bands, tea bags. By using them in different ways, I try to distort this understanding. I remove them from their familiar setting in order to question the purpose that years of use have assigned to them.
The materials I use are those most taken for granted of all: the objects we use in daily life without ever considering their purpose: plastic bags, paper napkins, rubber bands, tea bags. By using them in different ways, I try to distort this understanding. I remove them from their familiar setting in order to question the purpose that years of use have assigned to them.
In much the same way, one can question certain role assignments within society. I am especially interested in the social perception of femininity and the female gender role. In my work, this concern is reflected in the choice of materials; I use household objects that carry particular associations with the "feminine" field, with domestic life. This connection is reinforced by an emphasis on process, on practical methods of making the work, and on its apparent simplicity. At the same time, I keep in mind the hidden role an object plays in our lives through the manipulation of gender-coded visual means.
My work is concerned with how things are represented. By exposing the hierarchical structure of meaning, I hope to call that hierarchy into question. I examine the ways in which gender distinctions are established and maintained through the social assignment of everyday objects to the feminine. This relates to contemporary theories of "gendered space" (Daphne Spain, Henrietta Moore, Shirley Ardener, Nancy Spector, and others).
According to Nancy Spector, the social division of space into public and private, with objects assigned to a "feminine" interior, underscores and establishes the binary oppositions inherent to sexual difference. In my work, seemingly neutral objects evoke associations with the home, with traditionally feminine tasks, and, by extension, with a woman; in this way they serve as a metaphor for human subjectivity as a whole."
Other Articles
Found, Invented was the first group exhibition of contemporary art at YEMAA, Atyrau's center for contemporary culture.
This group exhibition was devoted to the anthropology and politics of food.
