Colonialism in the Work of Some Artists

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Table of Contents

Introduction
The scope of performance art
Robert Mapplethorpe’s creative work
Conclusion
Works Cited

Introduction

In the second half of the past century, the American art world shattered the traditional views on the tradition to passively depict the objects. That was the time when “the critics lambasted gays as “bad” men and labeled women photographers who took pictures of their pictures of their children as unfit mothers and “pornographers” (Fusco 3). This postwar performance art emerged as they protest against the social conservatism of American life thus shocking the public with overt displays of sexuality and politics.

The scope of performance art

In the book The Bodies that were not ours: and other writings, Fusco presents a galaxy of art performers that managed to pass through the limited outlooks of conservatism supporters. Hence, in 1989, Mapplethorpe’s photographic works reveal the topics that were strictly forbidden in society and provoked many discussions among the critics.

Robert Mapplethorpe’s creative work

Robert Mapplethorpe was one of the representatives of the Surrealistic movement in the Post War period who was known for black and white photos of flowers and naked men. He also belonged to the Negritude movement who objectified black male bodies thus giving rise to the black gay cultural activity (Fusco 14). His sexual images provoked indignation among conservative politicians thus creating juxtaposed stereotypes against the portrayal of contemplative objects. In particular, his work “Thomas” depicts a black male body encaged into a circular barrier with his arms stretched to reveal himself from the cage (Mapplethorpe n. pag). In this way, Mapplethorpe intended to destroy the social and religious boundaries. This photo is also an attempt to surpass the traditional frames and interpret the moral and psychological state of people through the material presentation of nudity and sexuality. Disclosing the scope of performance.

The rhetoric of objects can thus be defined as the use of material culture within a context of presentation or display…for the sake of producing a visual and material argument at a particular historical moment and within a legible semantic code (Gonzalez 186).

Despite Mapplethorpe’s shocking presentation of nudity, which is often confused with pornography, this was, perhaps, the only way to prove that other displays of culture and social life had the right to existence. His extraordinary homoerotic image of the male body was of secondary importance for the idea the artist intended to say. Therefore, Thomas’s main idea lies in the manifestation of human nature, should it be homosexual or heterosexual; it is also a display of a man’s attempt to breaks the boundaries of forbidden to establish the freedom of choice and orientation.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the main purpose of colonial art installation was directed at the distortion of false traditional stereotypes based on the desire to introduce changes to artistic culture. The performance art was also aimed at discovering more spaces and surfaces for creative work. In this way, Robert Mapplethorpe was in the constant search of symmetry and rigidity.

Works Cited

Coco Fusco, “The Bodies that Were Not Ours”. The Bodies that Were Not Ours New York: Routledge, 2001

Gozalez, Jennifer. ‘Archaeological devotion’. With other eyes: looking at race and gender in visual culture. US: U of Minnesota Press, 1999.

Mapplethorpe, Robert. ‘Thomas’ Masters’ Gallery. n. d. Web. 2010.

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Colonialism in the Work of Some Artists

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