Journal Entry 3: Ulrich Opening

     The Fall 2024 Ulrich opening was incredibly fun and inspiring. The Dream Machine exhibit was surreal and playful. There were many thought provoking pieces on display but I was most intrigued by the [Re]Pose exhibit which featured the motif of reclining figures. Though all of them were amazing, one piece in particular stood out to me the most. Harry Sternberg's print titled "Principle #1: What Seek We?" made in 1930. The print features a reclining female figure, whose face has been replaced with a skull. In the background, there are clothed men shrouded in shadows, observing the nude woman. 

    According to the statement next to the art work, the print deals with themes of objectification of women in art, in that the body of the woman is turned into a symbol that is necessary to understand the artist's message. In this particular piece, the woman is meant to convey both danger and beauty. The blurb explicitly states that "she is either a harbinger of death or death itself; either way, she is both a desired and dangerous figure."

    I was drawn to this artwork on the basis that it dealt with objectification of women and it made me wonder about how that theme relates to my own artwork. In my work, I use many nude figures including female ones, as well as appropriating various types of pornography to make commentary on how woman and young girls feel and are made to feel about their bodies. I feel objectifying women is something we understand as a concept most easily through the lens of explicit material, but Sternberg's piece in the show not only objectifies the female subject by having her nude and being looked at by men, but flattening her to be a symbol or moral for men in general. That being said, there are many times where women have been turned into symbols for moral wisdom in story telling, with some being praised for their progressive and feminist tales. The work made me consider objectification beyond the lens of just sexual or explicit connotations.