FACE UP
Brides
Since they met at art school six years ago, these six inner west women have worked together and learned from each other. Their project has involved exploring what they can do as mature and politically aware people who are also emerging artists. One result of their explorations is FACE UP at the Shop Gallery. Originally conceived with a focus on portraits, self-portraits and “selfies”, FACE UP asks questions about identity, emotion and responsibility.
Brides
How do we face up to this strange period of history?
Since 2013 I have intermittently experimented making artworks about brides. African sculptures also appear in my bride pictures. Very different from the image of sweet innocence and delicate bridal silk is the heavy Yoruba Gèlèdé headdress, which depicts a placid, inscrutable older woman. Atop the wooden head sit symbols of strength and peace such as a bird or snake. These headdresses are carved and worn by men who masquerade as women for an elaborate spectacle, dedicated to balance and harmony, performed in the marketplaces of Yoruba lands.
Humans are instinctive, cultural and creative animals. So much has changed in recent years, but marriage, weddings and the persona of the bride have persisted. Why? How? What kind of life and what kind of world must a bride face up to? White lace and dark carved wood appear to be almost opposite cultural creations, but there is much in common if you consider a little longer. Our social and cultural institutions have shaped human experience, but nowadays their limitations are glaring. How does a hopeful bride or a thoughtful and experienced older woman face up to her own realities and the realities of our time?
Janet Kossy
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Bride (2016)
Acrylic and collage on canvas
61 x 46 cm
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Bride (2014)
Oil on canvas
61 x 46 cm