Journey into the heart of a Japanese woman’s photography (日本語付き)

Coming across my favorite photography might be a result of accident. In other word, not consciously looking for your favorite photography would be the shortest way to meet good photography. When I first saw a series of Portrait of Second-hand Clothes which Yuki Onodera took photograph, many stuff fully moved me without prior knowledge of her background. At the beginning of 90’s in Japan it happened that many women photographers appeared. New term so-called “girl photograph” came into being against male-dominated photography community. Along with like this historical background, Yuki Onodera made a debut as photographer. Despite she was born in Tokyo and grew up in Japan, latterly in 1993 began to work based in Paris. Yuki Onodera tells the reason why one artist working in Europe. Europe has been comprised of many different countries and cultures. And Paris has functioned as crossroads which mean that many people in Europe passing through Paris. Furthermore she makes a point that it’s important for artists to view native country through being as foreigner.

Through seeing her photograph many people grasp her works as mysterious. It has been referred in her own words that there’re parts of vague at the process of her work. It would be hard to explain it though, she tries to pick it up sensuously. With the passing of the years it sometimes happens that she finally calls to her mind that idea contained like that meaning she’s never came up with at the process. That’s one that meaning of idea sometimes comes after.

It also comes to appear her sensitive part at the process of a series of Portrait of Second-hand Clothes when she shortly moved to Paris. She tells the story about its background. When she was thinking about photographic subject which is not Portrait but something different, she grasped second-hand cloth as feel like human’s shell. At the same time it took place that Christian Boltanski who is representative of french contemporary artist exhibited his works used a pile of second-hand cloth, she got herself down to his exhibition. At his show a bag was being sold 10-franc, spectator can leave with full of second-hand cloth in the bag. That is art installation that second-hand clothes assembled over the world are carried to another different place. She put its second-hand cloth hung with support like wire by the window of her apartment.

Through browsing her working process, opposed to my first impression that I see her work having lyrical description, she is interested in photograph in itself than making image. She tells that she explores that photograph is deeply influencing our knowledge and perception. At the same time two questions have appeared: what is photography, and what can be done through it? I thought I step into different dimension of photography not dimension of making image.

Written by Ryota Umemura  for International Foundation for Women Artists.
Learn more about Yuki Onodera here.

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Written in Japanese :

私にとって好きな写真と出会うことは、偶然の産物が生み出すものかもしれない。他の言葉で言い換えると、意識的に好きな写真を探さないことが素敵な写真に出会う近道だろう。オノデラユキの「古着のポートレート」に初めて出会った時、予備知識なしに私の心を動かしました。90年代の初頭、日本に数多くの女性フォトグラファーが誕生し、男性が支配していたフォトグラファーの世界に対し、その新しい潮流を表わす言葉としてガールズフォトが生まれました。このような時代背景をもとに、オノデラユキは写真家としてデビューします。

彼女は東京で生まれ育ちますが、1993年にパリを拠点に活動し始めます。ここで活動初期からパリを拠点に活動する彼女にとって、アーティストとしてヨーロッパや海外で活動する理由を述べています。ヨーロッパは多様な国と文化で構成され、パリは多くの人が通過するクロスロードとしての機能を持ち合わせ、また自分が育った国を客観視することは、ものづくりをする人にとって必要であると語っています。彼女の作品を見た多くの人は、オノデラユキの作品を「謎」や「不思議さ」として捉えている。また彼女の言葉の中にも作品を制作していく過程で、自分でも曖昧で説明できない部分があり、感覚的に選んでいることがあり、何年か経ってこんな意味も含まれていたのだとようやく思い当たることがあると語っています。

パリに拠点を移した直後に制作された「古着のポートレート」のプロセスにも彼女の感覚的な部分が見えてきます。ポートレートではなく、何か違うものでと考えている時、人間の抜け殻になるような感じとして古着が目に付いたと彼女が作品制作の始まりについて語っています。またその同時期にフランスを代表する現代アーティストのクリスチャン・ボルタンスキーが古着を使った展覧会を開催し、そこに彼女は足を運びます。会場では10フランで袋が販売され、古着を詰めて帰れる。世界各国から集められた古着が、また違う場所へと散っていくというインスタレーションである。彼女はこの会場から持ち帰った古着を針金のような支持体にかけて、アパートメントの窓際に置いて写真を撮っていきました。

彼女の制作過程を通し、私が思い描いた彼女の作品から感じたリリカルさとは反対に、彼女の写真に対する見方はイメージ創出よりも写真それ自体に興味があります。それは、私たちの知識、認識に写真が大きく影響を与えていることに対する探求であると彼女は語っています。写真とは何か、 写真を通して何が可能か、私はイメージ創出としての写真とは別の世界に足を踏み入れたのだと思う。

Written by Ryota Umemura  for International Foundation for Women Artists.
Learn more about Yuki Onodera here.

Toronto based realistic Painter; Malinda Prud’homme

“It is my sincerest hope to make women feel empowered and uniquely beautiful just as they are.”

-Malinda Prud’homme

Even though I’d been making art my entire life it never became a professional goal until my mid 20s. I’d always wanted to become a teacher because I loved learning and wanted to instill that passion in our youth. People generally like to say that high school “was the best time of their life”. It was the opposite for me. I didn’t fit in socially and was often bullied. In some cases my teachers even took part in ridiculing me and it wasn’t long before I realized kindness and maturity have nothing to do with age. Because of my personal experiences I wanted to become a teacher that students would feel comfortable coming to with their problems. I wanted to be there for those who had no one else to talk to. I worked my hardest to achieve this goal and while I do have all the necessary education and more, it just wasn’t meant to be. After I graduated the teaching market in Ontario was incredibly flooded and it was impossible for me to find work.

After years of feeling like my dreams were unattainable I decided it was time to start a new dream, a dream that had been within me all along but seemed too“unrealistic” to ever give it a try. If my “realistic” dream wasn’t panning out then it was time to go big! I’d already been making art part time so thanks to the support of my family I decided to go full-time. With that support and years of hard work and dedication I am proud to say I have been a full-time professional artist for 4 years now.

What keeps me so motivated is the message I try to spread using my artwork and my online presence. It is my sincerest hope to make women feel empowered and uniquely beautiful just as they are. The amazing feedback from fans that I’m fortunate to receive really keeps me passionate and excited about my work.

“True Beauty”, “Alisha Gauvreau”

IFWA..You mentioned you were dissatisfied with the way the medias represent women. What do you disagree with?

I disagree with the lack of variety we see in our media. Quite often the women portrayed in magazines and advertisements fit into the stereotypical “norms” for beauty. Generally they are thin, young, and predominantly white. These women are gorgeous but so are others! I believe ALL women, regardless of age, size, ethnicity, and personal style, are beautiful in their own unique way. My message is not one the condemns the beauty of women who fall under societal norms but rather encourages all women to see themselves as beautiful. I would love to see larger women and women of different ethnicity incorporated into our mainstream media. I feel that variety is not only beautiful, but is the key to solving the epidemic of low self-esteem a lot of today’s women suffer from.

-Curvy Beauties

IFWA..Do you see an evolution , or is it still the same as when you first noticed it?

I have definitely seen things change since starting my practice. A trend that’s becoming more popular is the acceptance that women come in all different shapes and sizes and that these shapes and sizes do not necessarily correlate to their health and certainly do not impact their ability to be beautiful. Perhaps I’m seeing this because I surround myself with like-minded people and am interested in topics that follow this type of thinking but I truly believe it is becoming more common and I can only hope that this continues.

IFWA..Did you ever had any difficulty working as a woman, to find work, or be accepted as a portraitist ? If so, what did you do to help you go through the difficulties ?

It’s hard for me to say whether or not I’ve been held back as an artist because I’m a woman. Honestly I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have had a good amount of work from the beginning. I think my skill speaks for itself and people who don’t respect women would likely not find my work interesting anyways as it revolves around the well-being of women. The only thing that I’ve noticed is how my language is interpreted differently, very likely because I’m a woman. I’m quite confident about my skill and my work. I would never dream of thinking I’m perfect or even better than others, in fact I never compare myself to other artists, but I have come a long way over the years and I’m proud of that. On occasion I’ll receive comments saying I’m “arrogant” or “pretentious” which is always from someone who doesn’t follow my practice. It’s frustrating that a woman’s confidence is seen as arrogance. But then again, I try not to take too much of what is said from strangers to heart. No matter what you do ,there will always be someone out there who dislikes you. You just have to be self-aware and know you’re doing the best you can do.

–Color inspired, RAW

IFWA..I must say your pencil drawings are quite touching…How is it working in black and white compared with color, or is it a question of medium?

Thank you! It can sometimes be a question of medium. For example if someone requests a charcoal drawing they’ll obviously be receiving an image in black and white but then again I do sometimes make the choice to do black and white with something like oil paints just because it gives off a different emotion. At this point in time I believe I prefer to work with color. The brightness and variety makes me very happy. But I can say from experience that working in black and white is much easier. Your eyes aren’t required to take in as much information. You’re focusing on darks and lights rather than colors as well as darks and lights. I think in the end it’s all a matter of preferences and I’m certainly willing to do whatever my clients wish.

—A Mark of Beauty

IFWA.. Your portraits of women really captures their personality . Who are those women and why them? 

Oh, I’m so glad to hear that. Thank you! When I first began doing portraiture I had to prove my skill so I would often work from images of models and actresses who had inspired me in some way. Now that I’ve gathered a following and people are confident in my skills I am able to put calls out to the public for images. Generally when I’m working on a new series I’ll post throughout social media asking for submissions of beauty stating that all women are welcome to apply. From these submissions I am able to choose, sometimes at random, who will be represented in my new works. I LOVE this! This was certainly a goal I had in mind when I first started because I truly want to show “everyday” women just how stunning they really are. So yes! They absolutely can be people I don’t know and have been! Anyone can submit to my calls! The more the merrier. :)

–One and the same

IFWA..Are you tempted to work with other medias then the ones you are using -mostly oil and acrylic -, say sculpture, clay, photography ?

You’re right! Most of my work is done using acrylic paint and oil paints. BUT I’m also a Mixed Media Artist so from time to time I like to pull out quite a few of my different supplies and put them together in a new series or artwork. I use pencil, charcoal, pastel, watercolor paint, gouache paint, encaustic (wax) paint, and have just begun learning airbrush. As far as sculpture and photography go … No, I’m not tempted to use them. My father is a sculptor but that just never appealed to me. I prefer working in the 2 dimensional plane. I do LOVE taking photographs, especially when I’m traveling, but I believe my shots are better used as reference photos for my artwork rather then incorporated directly into a piece. But you never know! Perhaps that will change in the future.

IFWA..Do you have any interest in working with other artist , collaborating on a common project / exhibition / performance? 

It’s definitely fun to work on collaborations with other artists as long as they have a similar work ethic. I take my work seriously so I would expect anyone I work with to feel the same way. Putting together a show with another artist and maybe creating a collaborative piece for it would certainly be something I’d be interested in.

IFWA..Is there a particular piece of work you are really satisfied with ? If so, why?

One of my favorite pieces to date is “True Beauty” ‘Delena Providence’. Why am I so satisfied with it? Hmm that’s a tough one. I believe it’s because of the look I achieved with the eyes. They are very mesmerizing. Another reason I might be so drawn to this piece is because it depicts a young woman who’s been in my life since I was toddler and I always felt she was special and worthy of being honored in this way. It could also be because this piece took a very long time to complete, putting in each strand of hair one at a time, so there is a sense of accomplishment and time well spent. And lastly because of the variety in her skin tone. Such bright whites and the dark shadows all taking shape harmoniously in one portrait is a bit of a rare thing and I like how it turned out in this piece.

“True Beauty”,‘Delena Providence’

IFWA..What direction is your work taking , now?

I currently have an abundance of commissions I must complete so I haven’t allowed myself to go too overboard with planning original artwork/series. I do know that I would like to continue proving that a variety of women are beautiful using “everyday” women. I think that in order to change things up.

I’d like to start including geometric shapes with my portraits as a way of contrasting my realistic portrait style. I also plan to work on wood when I find the time in order to allow some of the natural grain to show through. In all truth I have a huge list of ideas I’d like to get to but for now it’s time to pay the bills. Working on commissions, while isn’t as creative, has it’s own rewards. There’s nothing like creating something that will be cherished and passed down from generation to generation.

On a smaller,scale, I’ve done collaborative works with my fan base, many of which are artists themselves. I held a contest this past year where anyone was able to take my initial drawing and turn it into their own artwork. It was amazing seeing all the different outcomes. You can check it out HERE.

 

Website: www.MalindaPrudhomme.com                                      www. Facebook.com/MalindaPrudhomme                                                                                           Twitter: www.Twitter.com/MalindaArt                                                                                            Instagram: www.Instagram.com/MalindaPrudhomme                                                                        Etsy: www.MalindaPrudhomme.Etsy.com                                                                                                Blog: www.MalindaPrudhomme.Blogspot.com

Eva Hesse documentary

Film Forum presents EVA HESSE starting tomorrow, April 27th in part of “Eva Hesse Around Manhattan.”

From the beginning, Eva Hesse’s life was marked by drama and social challenges. Born in Hamburg in 1936 to a German-Jewish family, the artist’s fierce work ethic may have developed from a complex psychology that was formed, in part, as a Jew born in Nazi Germany. Having escaped the fate of her extended family, Eva and her older sister Helen were sent out on one of the last Kindertransports (trains that carried Jewish children to safety) and was eventually reunited with their parents in Holland. They made their way to New York but her family struggled to make a new home and her mother, after many years of depression and a failed marriage, committed suicide when Eva was 9 years old.

The artist graduated from Cooper Union and Yale School of Art, then returned home to Manhattan in late 1959 and began to receive attention for her highly original, abstract drawings. In 1961 Hesse met Tom Doyle, an already established sculptor, and in a whirlwind romance married him a scant 6 months after first glimpse.  Their relationship was both passionate and competitive. Hesse struggled with the desire to be on equal footing with Doyle in terms of their art making but also wanted to be in a marriage with someone who could offer her the security that life often denied her.

 In 1964 Friedrich Arnhard Scheidt, a German industrialist, offered an all-expenses paid artist’s residency to Tom Doyle for year of working in an abandoned textile factory near Essen, Germany. It was tough choice – go back to the country that had murdered her family or stay in New York and work menial jobs while trying to make art with any time and energy left over. Ironically, the work on which her reputation was built began to emerge during this extended visit to the homeland she had escaped 25 years earlier.

 The documentary film celebrates the life of one of America’s foremost postwar artists and joins organizations around the city in celebrating her work.

 For more information on where her work is being displayed and celebrated, visit: http://zeitgeistfilms.com/sitelets/evahesse/evahessenyc.html

ERICA MURALLES HAZBUN : The Labyrinths

Interviewed and Translation  by Séverine Grosjean, Edited by Yoon Joo Lee

 After studying geography, international relations and sociology in different countries (France, Spain, Portugal, Ecuador, Peru),  Séverine Grosjean works as a freelance cultural journalist. She has published articles in  french, Canadian, British, Mexican, Chilean magazines. She is preparing to inaugurate her  first photography exhibition as curator in Paris in october. 

Erica Murals Hazbun began working with paint, mainly in oil and acrylic, a step which ended after a few years. This did not meet her expectations, due to certain limitations found in the paint. That is why it was necessary for her to experiment with different techniques such as collage and printmaking, including screen printing, gravure printing or digital engraving.

Serie: “Ensayos Imaginarios”, Collages, 2010.

Serie: “Ensayos Imaginarios”, Collages, 2010.

Sín Título, óleo y acrílico, 2010

“Laberinto Interno I”, 2011, Serie: Laberintos, Grabado: Intaglio sobre papel de algodón, 57 x 76 cm.

 

“Laberinto Interno III”, 2011, Serie: Laberintos, Grabado: Intaglio sobre papel de algodón, Trazo original del Centro Histórico de la ciudad de Guatemala, 57 x 76 cm.

“Construcciones Imaginarias III”, 2010, Serie: Construcciones Imaginarias, Grabado digital, 61 x 83 cm

” Construcciones Imaginarias VII”, 2012, Serie Construcciones Imaginarias, Grabado digital, 110 x 45cm

Many of her works are worked from a line drawn by hand and then scanned, along with Mayan textiles models. In her work, she explores the facilities, subject and abstract art. This is particularly the case for this series illustrated by clips called « Process » and a series of installations, she currently continues to develop by including soldering iron and copper wire.

“Proceso III”, 2013, Serie: Procesos, Acrílico y grapas sobre papel de algodón, 57 x 76 cm.

“Proceso IV”, 2013, Serie: Procesos Acrílico y grapas sobre papel de algodón, 57 x 76 cm.

“No. 1” (detalle), 2014, Serie: Sin Título, metal soldado, Dimensiones variables, 260 x 170 cm.

She was quickly interested in abstract art. She wanted to travel to the United States and France to specialize through courses focusing on drawing, composition studies and bases leading to abstract art. Back in Guatemala, she was in contact with several artists who guided the variously as Hellen Ascoli, Marlov Barrios ,Moises Barrios and Max Leiva.

It is important for her to define the relationship between “what we want to do” and “what can be done.” Erica says that throughout the process there is the work that is in the head, the work that is in the hands and the final work. She displays a specific piece but by developing and experimenting with different materials, certain limits and certain changes appear. However, most of her pieces are worked from tests or error, so if the end result varies, it does not matter as long as it does not deviate from her intention.

Her creative process integrates both the written part as the realization of the piece. She needs to work on her pieces. She uses the perception and intuition as a function part of the process. This is the case of an installation in which she was used copper wire as a wire loom. She has chosen for its features and contradictory features: strong and rigid but malleable and resistant.

“Sin Título”, (detalle), 2014, Serie: Sin Título, Alambre de cobre tejido, Dimensiones variables, 260 cm x 32 cm (diámetro).

Erica focuses on every detail. It is a meticulous work. Each work requires a special time. Some can be worked sporadically, but there are others that require ongoing attention. For the latter, Erica becomes a hermit. She locks herself with her until the end. Her work is constantly updated. She uses modulation or repetition as a starting point. She reflected on the daily monotony and behavior patterns in humans and what happens in daily life. The intention is not to build a closed, perfect system, but a system tied to life, so random and unplanned.

To know more about Erica Muralles Hazbun here .

Presented by the International Foundation for Women Artists.

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 Interview in French

ERICA MURALLES HAZBUN ET SES LABYRINTHES

Elle a commencé à travailler avec de la peinture, principalement à l’huile et à l acrylique, une étape qui s’est terminée au bout de quelques années. Cela ne répondait pas à ses attentes, en raison de certaines limitations trouvées dans la peinture. C’est pourquoi il lui a été   nécessaire d’expérimenter différentes techniques comme le collage et la gravure, y compris la sérigraphie, l’héliogravure ou la gravure numérique.

Plusieurs d’entre elles sont travaillées à partir d’une ligne tracée à la main puis numérisée accompagnée de modèles numérisés de textiles mayas. Dans son travail, elle explore les installations, l’art objet et abstrait. C’est notamment le cas pour cette série illustrée par des agrafes appelée – Processus– et une série d’installations qu’elle continue d’élaborer actuellement en y incluant du fer à souder et le fil de cuivre.

Elle s’est très vite intéressée à l’art abstrait. Elle a souhaité voyager aux Etats-Unis et en France pour se spécialiser grâce à des cours mettant l’accent sur le dessin, les études de composition et les bases menant à l’art abstrait. De retour au Guatemala , elle a été en contact avec plusieurs artistes qui la guidèrent de différentes manières comme Hellen Ascoli, Marlov Barrios, Moïse Barrios et Max Leiva.

Son processus créatif intègre aussi bien la partie écrite que la réalisation de la pièce. Elle a besoin d’intervenir sur ses pièces. Elle utilise la perception et l’intuition comme une fonction faisant partie du processus. Il lui est important de définir la relation entre «ce que l’on veut faire » et «ce qui peut se faire ». Erica explique que tout au long du processus , il existe le travail qui est dans la tête, le travail qui est entre les mains et le travail final . Elle visualise une pièce déterminée mais en élaborant et expérimentant avec différents matériaux certaines limites ou changements apparaissent. Cependant, la plupart de ses pièces sont travaillées à partir d’essais ou d’ erreurs , par conséquent si le résultat final varie , cela n’a pas d’importance tant qu’il ne dévie pas de son intention.

Ceci est le cas d’une installation dans laquelle elle a utilisé le fil de cuivre comme un fil à tisser . Elle l’a choisi pour ses caractéristiques et ses particularités contradictoires: solide et rigide mais aussi malléable et résistant.

Erica se concentre sur chaque détail. C’est un travail méticuleux .Chaque oeuvre exige un temps spécial. Certaines peuvent être travaillées de façon sporadique, mais il y en a d’autres nécessitant une attention continue. Pour ces dernières , Erica devient une ermite . Elle s’enferme avec elle jusqu’à la terminer.

Son travail est constamment mis à jour . Elle utilise la modulation ou la répétition comme un point de départ. Elle réfléchie sur le quotidien, la monotonie et les modèles de comportement chez l’homme et ce qui se passe dans sa vie quotidienne. L’intention n’est pas de construire un système fermé , parfait mais un système  lié à la vie, donc aléatoire et non planifié.

Séverine GROSJEAN

Lean More about Erica Muralles Hazbun here. 

Presented by the International Foundation for Women Artists.

Book Review / The Door by Magda Szabo

Relationships are hard. That’s what everyone says. Who knows what strange chemistry brings and binds two people together? When it comes to love and friendship, there are limits to how well we can know another person. The shadowy spaces between those limits makes fertile ground for fiction, given the right kind of writer.

Magda Szabó was that kind of writer. Her novel The Door tells the story of the relationship between a woman writer and her housekeeper, Emerence. The two could not be more different. The writer, the story’s narrator, is both politically active and religious. Emerence disdains the Church and all people in positions of power. The writer, married to another writer, lives a life of the mind. Emerence, all physicality, is anti-intellectual. The writer is a public figure; Emerence is secretive and will not let anyone into her flat. Although she is older than the writer, Emerence is much stronger. She works tirelessly – and according to her own schedule – taking care of her neighbors and the local animals when they are in need.

Emerence is not a subservient housekeeper. Emerence speaks her mind to the lady writer, and is often critical of her behaviors and convictions. In addition, Emerence makes unusual demands of her employer. Can she host a visitor at the lady writer’s house? Will the lady writer send her dog to Emerence’s house for the day? The two women get into frequent arguments, with Emerence winning every contest.

When a neighborhood woman named Pollet is found to have committed suicide, the lady writer is shocked to learn that Emerence knew about the woman’s plan and did nothing to prevent it. Emerence explains:

When the sands run out for someone, don’t stop them going. You can’t give them anything to replace life. Do you think I didn’t love Polett? That it meant nothing to me when she’d had enough and wanted out? It’s just that, as well as love, you also have to know how to kill. It won’t do you any harm to remember that. Ask your God – since you’re on such good terms with him – what Polett told him when they finally met.

Despite the turbulence of their relationship these two women come to depend on one another. The lady writer, who recognizes the good in Emerence, acquiesces to the arguments and the dramas. Emerence comes to care for the lady writer as she would a child. And Emerence lets the writer into the most secret part of herself.

Emerence, who is never sick, one day catches the flu. At least, that’s what the lady writer suspects. Emerence’s disappearance from the neighborhood causes alarm. From the novel’s first pages readers know that the narrator feels responsible for killing Emerence. Somehow this strong woman will die. How their relationship builds and the tragedy that undoes it is a keen study in the facts of human dignity.

The Door is considered to be semi-autobiographical. It was published in Hungarian in 1987 and was first translated into English in 1995. The Door is available in a 2005 paperback edition, translated by Len Rix, from the NYRB Classics. A 2012 film version, directed by Istvan Szabo, stars Helen Mirren.